Veteran strikes back at McCain

Today, nine members of Iraq Veterans Against the War testified before the Congressional Progressive Caucus about their experiences fighting in the Iraq war. Kristofer Goldsmith, who served Sadr City and was stop-lossed after returning home, revealed that he had attempted suicide and was discharged. The discharge forced him to forfeit the educational benefits promised under the GI bill and thus his “one hope and dream” to go to college:I was stop-lossed. My one hope and dream in the military was to go to college after I went through Iraq. I attempted suicide. I never deployed a second time. Because of that I received a general discharge. I lost my college benefits, the $40,000 promised to me in the Montgomery GI Bill, I will not be eligible to receive. And currently there is a Senator in Congress currently running for president, who is fighting to kill our Webb GI bill. And I’m one of the soldiers who will never get that money.

Webb GI bill passes the House, but Bush threatens a veto

The house passed the bill by a 256-to-166 margin, with 32 Republicans voting in favor of the measure, however it will likely not survive a Bush veto, but before it reaches the white house it must first pass the Senate next week.  The Bill was passed along with a tax measure on individuals making over 500K a year to pay for the program.

Land Of Irony: Playing political games on the backs of troops

After rejecting the war funding bill in the house by getting the GOP members to vote present, John Boehner, house minority leader, stated that “we’re playing political games on the backs of our troops.”

Well at least he’s being honest about his actions

Chris Matthews destroys Kevin James

I’ve never been a big fan of Chris Matthews, but seeing him rip apart the GOP talking points is glorious

edit:

Video added

Hillary supporters rage at NARAL

I’m surprised at all the hate towards NARAL, Hillary is behind and she cannot catch up, the focus needs to turn to McCain, it really seems to me that Hillary fans are more concerned about Hillary winning the nomination, and not about beating McCain.

Discussion of Inflation data

Economic ‘misery’ more widespread

Americans are feeling a lot more economic pain than the government’s official statistics would lead you to believe, according to a growing number of experts.

They argue that figures for unemployment and inflation are being understated by the government.
Part of the disconnect may be due to the fact that nondurable goods, such as food and gasoline, makes up only 12% of CPI [Consumer Price index].

In addition, food and energy prices are eliminated from the so-called core CPI, which many economists tend to focus more closely on because they claim food and gas prices are volatile.

But food and energy costs are a very important part of household budgets. And those prices have been skyrocketing: Gas prices were up about 21% over the 12 months ending in April.

The CPI showed only an 11% rise in home ownership costs from 2002 through 2006, a time that the National Association of Realtors reported that existing home prices soared 34%.

Bill Gross, the manager of Pimco Total Return, the nation’s largest bond fund, refers to the CPI as a “con job” that deliberately understates the price pressures faced by Americans in order to keep Social Security payments and other government costs pegged to the index unduly low.

Finally, there’s the unemployment rate. It was at a relatively low 5% in April. But according to Williams’ Web site, ShadowStats.com, the actual rate may be between 8% and 12% if you use a more accurate reading of those out of work.

Even the government’s own numbers show there are many unemployed people not showing up in the unemployment rate. The official reading does not include 4.8 million people who want to work but haven’t found a job, for example.

I have to agree with a lot of what is being said,i i’ve always felt that the measures used by the government are intended to sugarcoat the problems facing the country

Travis Childers wins in Miss.

With 414 of 462 precincts reporting, democrat Travis Childers is the projected winner

An important election for two reasons, first it was in a GOP stronghold state, and secondly because the GOP party in that state tried to tie Childers to Obama to try and harm him, and yet failed

GOP lies about Missouri employment

Obama gave a speech today in Cape Girardeau in Missouri about Job loss in the state, and the GOP tries to derail it by showing a picture of a help wanted sign stupid to begin with, because one sign doesn’t cover a state.

But they also forgot about this:

Missouri Unemployment at 5.7 in March, with 172,600 unemployed

Economic feelings getting worse

Obviously the pain at the pump and at the grocery stores is piling up for Americans

Obama’s amazing speech in WV

I want to thank Senator Rockefeller, not only for that generous introduction, but for his friendship and support in this campaign. I want to thank Secretary Richard Danzig, Admiral John Natham, and General Jim Smith for being here with us today and for their distinguished record of service to our country.

And I want to thank the people of West Virginia - particularly those who have worn the uniform of our country. More of you are veterans here than in almost any other state in the nation. So many Guard members from this very armory have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan on tour after tour, year after year. And that means there are more West Virginians who’ve had to say goodbye to these heroes; who’ve borne the burdens of their absence in ways that are often immeasurable - an empty chair at the dinner table or another Mother’s Day where mom is some place far away. Your sacrifice and the sacrifice of your loved ones is immense, and it must never be forgotten.

There is an election here tomorrow. I’m honored that some of you will support me, and I understand that many more here in West Virginia will probably support Senator Clinton. But when it’s over, what will unify as Democrats - what must unify us as Americans - is an unyielding commitment to the men and women who’ve served this nation and an unshakable fidelity to the ideals for which they’ve risked their lives.

Without that commitment, many of us wouldn’t be here today. I am one of those people. My grandfather - Stanley Dunham - enlisted after Pearl Harbor and went on to march in Patton’s Army. My grandmother worked on a bomber assembly line while he was gone, and my mother was born at Fort Leavenworth. When he returned, it was to a country that gave him the chance to college on the GI Bill; to buy his first home with a loan from the FHA; to move his family west, all the way to Hawaii, where he and my grandmother helped raise me. Today, my grandfather is buried in the Punchbowl, the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, where 776 victims of Pearl Harbor are laid to rest.

I knew him when he was older. But whenever I meet young men and women along the campaign trail who are serving in the military today, I think about what my grandfather was like when he enlisted - a fresh-faced man of twenty-three, with a heart laugh and an easy smile.

These sons and daughters of America are the best and the bravest among us. They are a part of an unbroken line of heroes who overthrew a King for the sake of an ideal; who freed the slaves and faced down fascism; who fought for freedom in Korea and Vietnam, from Kuwait to the Balkans - who still wake up every day to face down the gravest dangers in Iraq, Afghanistan, and all over the world.

When our troops go into battle, they serve no faction or party; they represent no race or region. They are simply Americans. They serve and fight and bleed together out of loyalty not just to a place on a map or a certain kind of people, but to a set of ideals that we have been striving for since the first shots rang out at Lexington and Concord - the idea that America could be governed not by men, but by laws; that we could be equal in the eyes of those laws; that we could be free to say what we want and write what want and worship as we please; that we could have the right to pursue our individual dreams but the obligation to help our fellow citizens pursue theirs.

Allegiance to these ideals has always been at the core of American patriotism - it’s what unites a country of so many different opinions and beliefs. It’s why some of us may disagree on our decision to start this war in Iraq, but all of us stand united in our support for the brave men and women who wage it. That’s how it should be. But it’s not how it’s always been.

One of the saddest episodes in our history was the degree to which returning vets from Vietnam were shunned, demonized and neglected by some because they served in an unpopular war. Too many of those who opposed the war in Vietnam chose to blame not only the leaders who ordered the mission, but the young men who simply answered their country’s call. Four decades later, the sting of that injustice is a wound that has never fully healed, and one that should never be repeated.

The young men and women who choose to serve are defending the very rights and freedoms that allow Americans to speak out against government actions we oppose. They deserve our admiration, respect and enduring gratitude.

At the same time, we must never forget that honoring this service and upholding these ideals requires more than saluting our veterans as they march by on Veterans Day or Memorial Day. It requires marching with them for the care and benefits they have earned It requires standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our veterans and their families after the guns fall silent and the cameras are turned off. At a time when we’re facing the largest homecoming since the Second World War, the true test of our patriotism is whether we will serve our returning heroes as well as they’ve served us.

We know that over the last eight years, we’ve already fallen short of meeting this test. We all learned about the deplorable conditions that were discovered at places like Fort Bragg and Walter Reed. We’ve all walked by a veteran whose home is now a cardboard box on a street corner in the richest nation on Earth. We’ve all heard about what it’s like to navigate the broken bureaucracy of the VA - the impossibly long lines, or the repeated calls for help that get you nothing more than an answering machine. Just a few weeks ago, an 89-year-old World War II veteran from South Carolina told his family, “No matter what I apply for at the VA, they turn me down.” The next day, he walked outside of an Outpatient Clinic in Greenville and took his own life.

How can we let this happen? How is that acceptable in the United States of America? The answer is, it’s not. It’s an outrage. And it’s a betrayal - a betrayal - of the ideals that we ask our troops to risk their lives for.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Not in this country. Not if we decide that this time will be different. There are many aspects of this war that have gone inalterably wrong, but caring for our veterans is one thing we can still get right. When I arrived in the Senate, I sought out a seat on the Veterans Affairs Committee so I could fight to give our veterans the care they need and the benefits they deserve. We fought to make sure that the claims of disabled veterans in Illinois and other states were being heard fairly, and we forced the VA to conduct an unprecedented outreach campaign to disabled veterans who receive lower-than-average benefits. I passed laws to get homeless veterans off the streets and prevent at-risk veterans from getting there in the first place. I led a bipartisan effort to improve outpatient facilities at places like Walter Reed, and slash red tape, and reform the disability process - because recovering troops should go to the front of the line, and they shouldn’t have to fight to get there. I passed laws to give family members health care while they care for injured troops, and to provide family members with a year of job protection, so they never have to face a choice between caring for a loved one and keeping a job.

But there is so much more work that we need to do in this country.

It starts with being honest about the sacrifices that our brave men and women are making. For years, this Administration has refused to count all of our casualties in uniform. In Iraq alone, tens of thousands of troops who were injured or fell ill have not been counted in our casualty numbers, going against the military’s own standards from past wars. It’s time to stop hiding the full cost of this war. It’s time to honor the full measure of sacrifice of our troops, and to prepare for the cost of their care.

That’s why I’ve pledged to build a 21st century VA as President. It means no more red tape - it’s time to give every service-member electronic copies of medical and service records upon discharge. It means no more shortfalls - we’ll fully fund VA health care, and add more Vet Centers, particularly in rural areas. It means no more delays - we’ll pass on-time budgets. It means no more means-testing - it’s time to allow every veteran into the VA system. And it means we’ll have a simple principle for veterans sleeping on our streets: zero tolerance. As President, I’ll build on the work I started in the Senate and expand housing vouchers, and launch a new supportive services housing program to prevent at-risk veterans and their families from sliding into homelessness.

I’ll also build on the work I did in the Senate to confront one of the signature injuries of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan - PTSD. We have to understand that for far too many troops and their families, the war doesn’t end when they come home. Just the other day our own government’s top psychiatric researcher said that because of inadequate mental health care, the number of suicides among veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan may actually exceed the number of combat deaths. Think about that. Think about how only half of the returning soldiers with PTSD receive the treatment they need. Think of how many we turn away - of how many we let fall through the cracks. We have to do better than this.

In the Senate, I’ve helped lead a bipartisan effort to stop the unfair practice of kicking out troops who suffer from them. And when I’m President, we’ll enhance mental health screening and treatment at all levels: from enlistment, to deployment, to reentry into civilian life. We also need more mental health professionals, more training to recognize signs and to reject the stigma of seeking care. And we need to dramatically improve screening and treatment for the other signature injury of the war, Traumatic Brain Injury. That’s why I passed measures in the Senate to increase screening for these injuries, and that’s why I’ll establish clearer standards of care as President.

We have called on our troops and their families for so much during these last years, but we haven’t always issued that call responsibly. Yes, we need to restore twelve month Army deployments, but we also need to restore adequate training and time at home between those deployments. My wife, Michelle, met with Army spouses the other day in North Carolina who told her about the toll it takes to watch your loved one serve tour after tour of duty with little to no time off in between. And they told her something we all need to remember: “We don’t just deploy our troops overseas, we deploy families.” That’s why we also need to provide more counseling and resources to help families cope with multiple tours.

And when our loved ones do come home, it is time for the United States of America to offer this generation of returning heroes the same thanks we offered that earlier, Greatest Generation - by giving every veteran the same opportunity that my grandfather had under the GI Bill.

There is no reason we shouldn’t pass the 21st Century GI Bill that is being debated in Congress right now. It was introduced by my friend Senator Jim Webb, a Marine who served as Navy Secretary under President Ronald Reagan.. His plan has widespread support from Republicans and Democrats. It would provide every returning veteran with a real chance to afford a college education, and it would not harm retention.

I have great respect for John McCain’s service to this country and I know he loves it dearly and honors those who serve. But he is one of the few Senators of either party who oppose this bill because he thinks it’s too generous. I couldn’t disagree more. At a time when the skyrocketing cost of tuition is pricing thousands of Americans out of a college education, we should be doing everything we can to give the men and women who have risked their lives for this country the chance to pursue the American Dream.

The brave Americans who fight today believe deeply in this country. And no matter how many you meet, or how many stories of heroism you hear, every encounter reminds that they are truly special. That through their service, they are living out the ideals that stir so many of us as Americas - pride, duty, and sacrifice.

Some of the most inspiring are those you meet at places like Walter Reed Army Medical Center. They are young men and women who may have lost a limb or even their ability to take care of themselves, but they will never lose the pride they feel for their country. They’re not interested in self-pity, but yearn to move forward with their lives. And it’s this classically American optimism that makes you realize the quality of person we have serving in the United States Armed Forces.

This, after all, is what led them to wear the uniform in the first place - their unwavering belief in the idea of America. The idea that no matter where you come from, or what you look like, or who your parents are, this is a place where anything is possible; where anyone can make it; where we look out for each other, and take care of each other; where we rise and fall as one nation - as one people. It’s an idea that’s worth fighting for - an idea for which so many Americans have given that last full measure of devotion.

I can still remember the day that we laid my grandfather to rest. In a cemetery lined with the graves of Americans who have sacrificed for our country, we heard the solemn notes of Taps and the crack of guns fired in salute; we watched as a folded flag was handed to my grandmother and my grandfather was laid to rest. It was a nation’s final act of service and gratitude to Stanley Dunham - an America that stood by my grandfather when he took off the uniform, and never left his side.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. But I also like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.”

There is no doubt that we are a nation that is deeply proud of where we live. But it is now our generation’s task to live in a way that Stanley Dunham lived; to live the way that those heroes at Walter Reed have lived; the way that all those men and women who put on this nation’s uniform live each and every day. It is now our task to live so that America will be proud of us. That is true test of patriotism - the test that all of us must meet in the days and years to come. I have no doubt that this nation is up to the challenge. Thank you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

Why does Obama do so badly in Kentucky and West Virginia

Its not racism per se, its more the lower levels of education and wealth, these two states are right in the Appalachian region, a heavily rural, poor and uneducated part of the country, where Obama has performed badly.  People there aren’t as politically aware or as informed as they are in other regions, and as a result such things as the muslim smear flourish there

News Roundup

Oil is off its peak, still above $125, stocks rise

Steve at Carpetbagger Report thinks that the Town Hall debates are a bad Idea, I disagree, this is the perfect way for Obama to pierce the media shield around McCain

Roy Blunt states what everyone knows, McCain wants to push more Bush policies

Jared Bernstein Reports how McCain may be worse than Bush, by adding 5.7 trillion to our debts

American Legion Supports Webb GI bill

Attack of the Videos

Unmoderated debates

Obama and McCain to hold joint town halls?

Both sides say they are open to Idea

Sounds interesting, a good way for Obama to expose McCain’s true self

McCain’s flip flop on Abortion

McCain tows party lines on Abortion, even in Rape and health cases

So if McCain wins expect to see a lot more of this:

Ten Year old girl who was raped gives birth

The GOP hates your mother

On Wednesday, the House took up the seemingly uncontroversial H. Res. 1113, “Celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother’s Day.” The resolution initially passed 412 to 0, until Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-KS) rose in protest:Mr. Speaker, I ask for a recorded vote because I’m sure every member wants their mother to know that they have supported the goals of Mother’s Day.

Tiahrt’s mother, however, may be disappointed to know that her son did not support Mother’s Day. He and 177 other Republicans decided to cast their vote against mothers.

The whole thing was intended to waste time and bring the house to a standstill

McCain lies to O’Reilly

McCcain said on Oreilly that he did vote for Bush in 2000

But Is proven a liar by NY times and the Wash Post

McCain’s land swap

Sen. John McCain championed legislation that will let an Arizona rancher trade remote grassland and ponderosa pine forest here for acres of valuable federally owned property that is ready for development, a land swap that now stands to directly benefit one of his top presidential campaign fundraisers

Courtesy of the washington post

Oil at $125 a barrel

At 12:19 PM oil is at $125.00 according to the CNN money ticker

Stocks are down, as is the dollar

Oil remains over $122 a barrel; talk of $200

Oil retreats from high, but remains over 122 a barrel, with talk of an eventual rise to 200 dollars a barrel in the near future

Personally, I don’t think it will get that high, my gut feeling is it will stabilize around $150 a barrel, barring something like an invasion of Iran or some other shock

New GI Bill reaches the House

Webb’s new GI bill goes to the house attached to supplemental war appropriations bill

This Bill supported by most vets will expand the ability of soldiers to get an educations, lets see whether the GOP actually supports the troops

Obama vs McCain

Obama is the Democratic nominee, Clinton is finished, her only hope is too steal the nomination, which would result in a schism in the party.

Obama needs to change the tone starting tommorow, since he can’t win WV or Kentucky, he shouldn’t really bother, he should frame the election in terms of why McCain is just more Bush, and how he has flip flopped and altered his positions for political expediency, turn the narrative into why he is the better choice

Gas continues its rise, leaving the markets down

The market is down today off of Cisco’s lowered expectations and gas passing $122

Note to Fox News: Stop Talking!

Apparantly Fox News has an issue of inserting its foot into its mouth with regards to people with smaller incomes

To that I say shut-up, stop talking, quit while you are ahead.

Clinton pulls out win in Indiana

It was close 638,274 to 615,862 in favor of Clinton, with 99% reporting, the networks have called it for her, however this is damaging to her chances, as she was expected to pull off a sizable win in the state

Also how much of an effect did Limbaugh have on the race?

Its going to be a photo finish

less than 21K difference with 92% of Precincts reporting!

Lake, wherefore art thou?

Less than 40K votes seperate Obama and Clinton in Indiana with the Lake, a country expected to go Obama still out, if he can overcome her lead in Indiana she’s finished.

Pentagon say GI’s should only get educated after six years of service

From the land of WTF!?!?

So all you Iraq war vets are out of luck, if the pentagon has its way, no college for you!

CNN projects Obama win in NC, Clinton holds lead in Indiana

Indiana still too close to call

Oil Passes $121

Money.cnn.com Ticker

$121.65 as of 11:22

Tax Windfall Profits?

There seems to be issues with whether the windfall profits of oil companies should be taxed, the concern is that the market is better suited to fund R&D and that it would raise prices on gas as companies passed the tax, to the second I say good, we should be promoting higher prices to force conservation and to the first I say no, I think the problem is that the market will always fund what is marketable and profitable, not always what will net future benefits, in this case the government is best to start the research, and once it seems like the market can make profits on it let them take over or join the research.

War Drums Beating

Seems the drums for war against Iran are beating harder, former ambassador to the UN John Bolton seems to believe we should attack, and in the Wall Street Journal Foud Ajami believes Iran needs to pay the price

The Change party perhaps

So apparantly Clinton has decided to try and force the issue on Michigan and Florida to get herself the lead in pldeged delegates.

They call it the Nuclear Option

It will certainly be interesting to see what happens, while a part of me is horrified, another part says this could be the first step in the death of the two party system.

Back to Posting

Semester is now finished, so I can back to the important stuff, lol

Bloomberg Praises Obama

On Gas tax stance

REPORTER: Could you elaborate on your opposition to giving drivers a break from the gas tax and how-

MAYOR: It’s about the dumbest thing I’ve heard in an awful long time from an economic point of view. I don’t understand why you think there’s any merit to it whatsoever. We’re trying to discourage people from driving and we’re trying to end our energy dependence. You don’t do that- and incidentally, and we’re trying to have more money to build infrastructure. All three of those things go- fly in the face of giving everybody 30 bucks a year. The 30 bucks is not going to change anybody’s lifestyle. The billions of dollars that we would otherwise have in tax revenues can make a big difference as to what kind of a world we leave our children.

REPORTER: And what would you say to Joe Bruno, who’s advocating for it?

Mayor: I have no idea. I haven’t talked to Joe Bruno about it. You’d have to say something to Joe Bruno. I- that’s- I just do not think that it is intelligent tax policy and it’s not a good energy policy. It is something that, you know, sounds good but I thought in this case Obama had it right.

Gallup poll Obama trails Clinton by four

Gallup Daily: Clinton 49%, Obama 45%

Not a good result for Obama, however, if things pick up in the next few days he can still win on tuesday and end the race, we’ll have to see how things play for him this week

MCCain Flip-Flops on Earmarks

McCain Says He No Longer Objects To Earmarks, Just The ‘Process’

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has repeatedly pledged that if elected president, he “will veto every bill with earmarks.” But in recent months, McCain has slipped further and further away from that promise:– After ThinkProgress pointed out that military housing and aid to Israel, McCain said that he would make an exception for certain projects.

– On April 24, McCain backtracked from his sweeping pledge, saying he would now judge spending cuts “on the basis of need.”

– McCain has repeatedly used earmark-funded projects and venues as backdrops to his campaign events.

Yesterday, McCain held a health care event at the Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, PA. While there he met Mary, a woman with ovarian cancer who was treated “in a $80 million clinical trial program funded by an earmark.” Confronted with this “human face of earmark spending,” McCain again backed away from his campaign rhetoric:

McCain praised the woman’s treatment and later said some earmarks were clearly worthy.

“It’s the process I object to,” McCain told reporters. “We need to start over from scratch.” […]

“When you earmark in the middle of the night you have no budgetary constraints,” he said.

As Politico’s Ben Smith notes, “That’s one thing about spending cuts: Much harder when you get to the details.”

Here’s the problem with McCain’s constant flipping: The reason the senator has said he opposes earmarks is because they are fiscally irresponsible. “No is always the right answer to wasteful spending,” according to McCain. Similarly, his campaign aides like to tout the costs McCain will supposedly save taxpayers by getting rid of all earmarks.

So now, if McCain is only opposed to the “process” and willing to fund some “worthy” earmarks, which programs will he cut to come up with that $95 billion in savings he has promised? So far, his campaign hasn’t been willing to give any specifics.

However he doesn’t seem to be above shameless pandering for votes

ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Republican John McCain said Wednesday that the bridge collapse in Minnesota that killed 13 people last year would not have happened if Congress had not wasted so much money on pork-barrel spending. ADVERTISEMENT

Federal investigators cite undersize steel plates as the “critical factor” in the collapse of the bridge. Heavy loads of construction materials on the bridge also contributed to the disaster that injured 145 people on Aug. 1, according to preliminary findings by the National Transportation Safety Board.

“The bridge in Minneapolis didn’t collapse because there wasn’t enough money,” McCain told reporters while campaigning in Pennsylvania. “The bridge in Minneapolis collapsed because so much money was spent on wasteful, unnecessary pork-barrel projects.”

McCain, the expected GOP presidential nominee, regularly rails against “earmarks,” the pet projects that lawmakers tuck into spending bills, such as the proposed $223 million “bridge to nowhere” in Alaska.

The Arizona senator says he would eliminate earmarks, estimated at $18 billion last year, and would make each project compete in the regular congressional funding process.

“I think there is a long, long list of earmarks which went to unnecessary and unwanted projects that I think should have gone to the bridge in Minnesota,” McCain said. “I don’t know whether it would have gone or not, but if you’re spending $223 million on a bridge in Alaska to an island with 50 people on it …”

McCain also criticized earmarks for projects in New Orleans that didn’t help protect the city from Hurricane Katrina, saying a congressional earmark helped to dig a channel outside New Orleans that helped speed the hurricane into the city.

McCain said such projects “have everything to do with the power and influence of an individual congressman or senator and has nothing to do with the actual transportation needs of the United States.”

On the same day, McCain was confronted with an earmark he did consider worthy. During a forum at Lehigh Valley Hospital, he met a woman with ovarian cancer who was treated in a clinical trial funded with $80 million in congressional earmarks.

The hospital was showing off an electronic medical records system that is virtually paper-free.

McCain insisted he was not trying to have it both ways and said that deserving projects can get money through regular channels.

“It’s the process I object to,” he said. “I’m sure that I can give you a list of projects the Mafia funds, and they would probably be good projects. But I can’t give you a justification for the Mafia. I can’t give you a justification for the corruption that’s been bred which has sent members of Congress to the federal prison,” he said.

“Look, if we reform the process, then the money will take care of itself. It’s a corrupt process,” he said.

Yup it is corrupt and you’re one of the worst

AFL-CIO official and Superdelegate John Patrick Endorses Obama

TEXAS SUPERDELEGATE ENDORSES BARACK OBAMA

CHICAGO, IL — Today, a Texas superdelegate backed Barack Obama, citing his record of standing up for working families and opposing trade deals that fail to protect American workers. The endorsement by Texas DNC Member John Patrick, who is also a 31 year member of the United Steelworkers (USW) as well as a Vice President of the Texas AFL/CIO, brings the total number of superdelegates to endorse Barack Obama to 249. Senator Obama is 283 delegates away from securing the Democratic nomination.

John Patrick said, “Senator Barack Obama has spent a lifetime standing up for American workers, and he will be a crucial voice for us in the White House. Senator Obama chose a career as an organizer on the streets of Chicago, fighting for working families who lost their jobs, specifically those families in neighborhoods devastated by steel plant closings. He has consistently opposed unfair trade deals that fail to offer protection to American workers - like NAFTA. Senator Obama has a real plan to put money back in the pockets of working families by restoring the manufacturing base in America.”

Unemployment up, jobless claims soar

Yup, the economy may not be technically in a recession, but to many that’s not much comfort:

The Labor Department reported Thursday that claims for unemployment benefits rose by 35,000 to 380,000. Private economists had expected claims would rise by a smaller 18,000.

The report on jobless claims came a day ahead of a report on unemployment for April. Economists expect that report will show that the unemployment rate edged up to 5.2% in April, from 5.1% in March. The economy is expected to lose 70,000 jobs, the fourth straight month of job losses

Economy turning worse for most Americans

PRINCETON, NJ — Forty-two percent of Americans say rising gas prices at the pump are a “crisis,” while 29% point to the declining value of the dollar, 28% to rising healthcare costs, 28% to the housing debacle, and 20% to each of the following: rising food prices, declining real wages, and job losses.

Especially concerning is the large number who say its a major problem or a crisis, over 70% say each factor is a major problem or a crisis, this tells me that even though the economy is not technically in a recession, to most people it is as bad as one, probably indicative of a wealth gap in America

New Polls

New polls have Obama behind Hillary in Indiana 46 to 41, ahead in North Carolina 49 to 42 and behind in North Carolina 44 to 42

The last one is from Insider advantage, and seems to probably be an outlier, as every other poll has him ahead in NC, but it shows the race tightening, reagrdless both races are close at this point and it will be a fight all the way to may 6th

I’ve been warning people about this

McCain Making Promises That Would Cost Taxpayers Billions

Republican John McCain is making promises that would cost billions of taxpayer dollars, yet he is vague about how he would pay for them.

McCain is handing around a campaign grab bag of goodies. There are little treats like a summer gas-tax holiday and new mortgages for struggling homeowners, and there are big plums like tax breaks for corporations and families with children.

The expected GOP presidential nominee has nothing on the Democrats. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama would spend billions of dollars themselves on things like paid family leave, universal health insurance and preschool for kids.

The difference? Unlike the Democrats, McCain has made a career of trying to cut spending. He rails against spending in nearly every speech. McCain gets laughs by singling out silly sounding projects like a federal DNA study of bears in Montana: “I don’t know if that was a paternity issue or a criminal issue.”

His plans will add to the deficit

Think progress has been covering McCain’s ”economic” plans as well

Here

Here

And Here

Right Wing group dislikes “Dear Abby” columnist

Today, the Washington Times highlights a recent analysis by the right-wing Culture and Media Institute, which concludes that Phillips has repeatedly “rejected traditional morality“:

Here’s the thing, she’s an advice columnist, its not her position to impart her morality onto others, if people are having sex its not her place to say you shouldn’t have sex because its wrong.  Face it, sex happens, its natural, now people have different views on sex, some say it should be only in marriage, or only between a man and a woman, great, if that’s what you feel then follow that, but its not her place to say that any other form of sex is evil; and even if she did it wouldn’t stop people.

Her place is to give her advice when someone asks, advice that helps them in the situation they are in, not to pass moral judgements on them.  If people are having sex the best advice is how to protect themselves and to seek out medical advice for testing and such, not that they are somehow evil for doing the act.

US kills leader of Al-Qaeda in Somalia

Striking at Al-Qaeda in Somlia is all well and good, but its Pakistan and Afghanistan where the real threat lies, how about striking there

Joe Andrew’s hits at Clintons before they hit him

Not wanting to end up like Bill Richardson, Andrews is attacking first

My endorsement of Senator Obama will not be welcome news to my friends and family at the Clinton campaign. If the campaign’s surrogates called Governor Bill Richardson, a respected former member of President Clinton’s cabinet, a “Judas” for endorsing Senator Obama, we can all imagine how they will treat somebody like me. They are the best practitioners of the old politics, so they will no doubt call me a traitor, an opportunist and a hypocrite. I will be branded as disloyal, power-hungry, but most importantly, they will use the exact words that Republicans used to attack me when I was defending President Clinton.

When they use the same attacks made on me when I was defending them, they prove the callow hypocrisy of the old politics first perfected by Republicans. I am an expert on this because these were the exact tools that I mastered as a campaign volunteer, a campaign manager, a State Party Chair and the National Chair of our Party. I learned the lessons of the tough, right-wing Republicans all too well. I can speak with authority on how to spar with everyone from Lee Atwater to Karl Rove. I understand that, while wrong and pernicious, shallow victory can be achieved through division by semantics and obfuscation. Like many, I succumbed to the addiction of old politics because they are so easy.

Hillary does better than Obama in Quinnipac polling against McCain

Although Obama does well against McCain in all three, Hillary does better

Florida: Clinton tops McCain 49 - 41 percent; McCain gets 44 percent to Obama’s 43 percent;

Ohio: Clinton beats McCain 48 - 38 percent; McCain gets 43 percent to Obama’s 42 percent;

Pennsylvania: Clinton tops McCain 51 - 37 percent; Obama leads McCain 47 - 38 percent.

While Obama shows imporvement in all three states, it could still hurt him that Hillary looks stronger

Note this poll probably does not take into account Obama’s denunciation of Wright on Tuesday

Iraqi MPs, Sadr meet in Iran in bid to end clashes

Iraqi Officials meet with Al-Sadr to end fighting

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — A group of Iraqi Shiite MPs is in Iran for talks with radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in a bid to end clashes between his fighters and troops that have killed hundreds of people, a Sadr aide said on Thursday.Sheikh Salah al-Obeidi, Sadr’s spokesman in the central holy city of Najaf, said the lawmakers, led by deputy parliament speaker Sheikh Khalid al-Attiya, travelled to Iran on Wednesday.

“The members of the parliament led by Sheikh Khalid al-Attiya went to Iran to meet Sadr there and other leaders of the Sadr movement who are in Iran to negotiate with him a way out of the crisis,” Obeidi said.

Also:

Iraqi officials supporting Al-Sadr refer to Maliki as Depraved

Joe Andrew, former DNC chair drops Clinton, endorses Obama

Hillary Clinton supporter Switches to Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) — A leader of the Democratic Party under Bill Clinton has switched his allegiance to Barack Obama and is encouraging fellow Democrats to “heal the rift in our party” and unite behind the Illinois senator.

Joe Andrew, who was Democratic National Committee chairman from 1999-2001, planned a news conference Thursday in his hometown of Indianapolis to urge other Hoosiers to support Obama in Tuesday’s primary, perhaps the most important contest left in the White House race. He also has written a lengthy letter explaining his decision that he plans to send to other superdelegates.

“I am convinced that the primary process has devolved to the point that it’s now bad for the Democratic Party,” Andrew said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

Bad news for Clinton, great for Obama

No new Taxes, yeah right!

When MCCain promised he wouldn’t raise taxes, he meant only in terms of explicit taxes

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Though Senator John McCain has promised to not raise taxes, his campaign acknowledged Wednesday that the health plan he outlined this week would have the effect of increasing tax payments for some workers, primarily those with high incomes and expensive health plans.

The campaign cannot yet project how many taxpayers might see their taxes go up, said Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Mr. McCain’s top domestic policy adviser. But Mr. Holtz-Eakin said in an interview that for some, Mr. McCain’s health care tax credits would not be large enough to compensate for his proposal to eliminate the tax breaks afforded to workers with employer-provided health benefits.

Car Bomb explodes in Iraq

Iraqi police: Nine people killed in car bomb in Baghdad

A car bomb has exploded in Baghdad this morning killing at least nine people and wounded 26 others, local police have said.

Media reports claim the bomb was aimed at a US patrol operating in Iraq’s capital.

The attack took place during Thursday morning in a crowded commercial area of east Baghdad, Iraqi police confirmed.

Amongst those killed by the blast were three women and a child.

The US military announced that no American soldiers were killed, but three had been injured as a result of the attack. It was also confirmed that 17 militants were killed by US troops in Sadr City.

Figures released yesterday showed that 49 US troops have been killed in Iraq during the month of April, making it the deadliest month since September.

According to the Associated Press, 4,062 members of the US military have been killed since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

The Iraq government said yesterday that 925 Iraqis were killed in recent fighting in Baghdad’s Sadr City.

Low Spending Is Taking Toll on Economy

Yeah tell me something I didn’t know already

For months, beleaguered American consumers have defied expert forecasts that they would soon succumb to the pressures of falling home prices, fewer jobs and shrinking paychecks. Now, they appear to have given in.On Wednesday, the Commerce Department reported that the economy continued to stagnate during the first three months of the year, with a sharp pullback in consumer spending the primary factor at play.

Pressures on households in which cash is tight appeared to weigh significantly in the calculations of the Federal Reserve as it rolled back interest rates Wednesday for the seventh time since September — this time by one-fourth of a percentage point — in a bid to prevent a further falloff in the economy.

The Fed made clear, though, that investors and borrowers should not expect another drop in interest rates anytime soon. In the statement accompanying their action, policy makers said they believed that with the short-term rate at 2 percent, they had already unleashed enough economic stimulus to “help promote moderate growth.”

With the overall economy growing at a mere 0.6 percent annual rate for the second quarter in a row, consumer spending advanced by only 1 percent, the government estimated. That was down sharply from the 2.9 percent gain for all of 2007 and the 3.1 percent gain for 2006. It was the weakest showing since 2001, the last time the economy was ensnared in a recession.

Even more ominously, Americans cut back on a wide variety of discretionary purchases, conserving their cash for necessary spending.

In the dip, economists saw evidence that the basic laws of arithmetic are now impinging on millions of households.

As real estate prices plunge, so does the ability of homeowners to borrow against the value of their homes, crimping a major artery of spending. As banks grow tighter with their dollars in a period of uncertainty, families are running up against credit limits, forcing many to live within their incomes. And as companies lay off employees and cut working hours, paychecks are effectively shrinking.

“This is not a fluke or a technical quirk,” said John E. Silvia, chief economist at Wachovia in Charlotte, N.C. “It’s fundamental. Real disposable income has been squeezed.”

A panel of economists at the National Bureau of Economic Research, a private research organization, ultimately decides whether a particular period of weakness qualifies as a recession, which it defines as a “significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months.”

Jared Bernstein, senior economist at the labor-oriented Economic Policy Institute in Washington, said, “The argument that we’re not in a recession certainly gets a little bit more of a boost from this report.”

But he and many other specialists still assume the economy will slide into negative territory. Moreover, the recession-or-not question is now almost entirely academic, Mr. Bernstein contended, given the steady erosion of American spending power and soaring costs for food and gasoline.

On Wednesday, the Labor Department reported that wages and benefits, adjusted for inflation, were down 0.6 percent in the January-March period, compared with a year earlier.

The Commerce Department reported that growth was hampered in the first three months of the year by a continued decline in home construction, which fell for the ninth straight quarter, and by a pullback in investments for business equipment and buildings.

The only factors preventing the economy from sliding backward were the growth of American exports — aided by a weakening dollar — and a swing in business inventories from shrinking to swelling. Putting exports and inventories aside, the final sales of goods and services produced domestically dipped at a 0.4 percent annual rate in inflation-adjusted terms, the first such decline since the end of 1991.

“You’re seeing a sharp slowdown in domestic demand,” said Michael T. Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners in Greenwich, Conn. “This is stall-speed growth.”

Economists suggested that larger stocks of unsold goods might portend trouble in the months ahead. If business does not swiftly improve, allowing factories to sell the products they have piled up, firms are likely to lay off workers at a more aggressive clip.

Even if business picks up and orders materialize, averting broader layoffs, factories will probably not need to produce as many new things in coming months, prompting some to trim working hours and purchases of materials.

“A big inventory contribution in one quarter means a payback in another quarter,” said Zach Pandl, United States economist at Lehman Brothers. “Firms are likely to pull back.”

The biggest questions ahead center on the duration and severity of the downturn. Attention now turns to the job market and the tax rebate checks being sent out to roughly 130 million American taxpayers to encourage spending.

On Friday, the Labor Department is to release its monthly snapshot of the jobs picture, which has become a primary factor gnawing at the economy. For four months in a row, the private sector has shed jobs, with 80,000 nonfarm jobs lost in March alone, according to the Labor Department.

If, as widely expected, the jobs report shows another monthly decline, markets are likely to absorb it as a sign of an economy that has effectively slipped into a recession despite the modestly reassuring positive figures from the Commerce Department.

Most economists agree that the tax rebate checks will finance a flurry of spending that should stimulate economic growth. But whether it will be a quick binge lasting only a few months, or whether spending will crystallize a sense of confidence, prompting companies to expand and hire, is a matter of much contention.

Even with the rebate checks, consumer spending should grow by only 1.7 percent this year and roughly the same next year, predicted Alan D. Levenson, chief economist at T. Rowe Price Associates in Baltimore. With spending that weak, the economy would probably continue to shed 75,000 to 80,000 jobs a month, even after stronger growth resumes, he said.

“It doesn’t get us across the chasm,” said Robert Barbera, chief economist at the research and trading firm ITG, speaking of the rebate checks. “It will make things look better than they are for a few months, but it doesn’t change the fundamentals. The underlying circumstances are unambiguously recessionary.”

McCain Flip-Flops on Iraq

Oh McCain, flip-flopping on 100 years

Talking Points Memo brings us the video:

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen McCain change his stance, in fact the Carpetbagger report has a few articles on it

No wonder he and Kerry are such great friends

Fallout

Obama’s lost some ground in the polls, against both McCain and Clinton

Possibly due to the fallout from Wright’s media appearances and possibly from some bad press this weekend on issues like the Gas tax holiday, pandering works for a lot of people unfortunately.

We will have to see if his pushback this week will result in any gains in the upcoming days, we’ll probably know by saturday if his numbers go back up

Obama’s town hall meeting in Indiana

This is why i’m supporting this cantidate, a real chance at engaging people, engaging the public in government, in making this country what it can be

Obama takes on flawed gas tax holiday

Obama strikes at the Gas tax holiday plans of McCain and Clinton

A pity some people don’t realize that it will likely raise prices at the pump

Hillary and the coffee machine

Must be an Obama supporter, lol

McCain and 100 Years in Iraq

McCain the RNC complaining about the DNC ad shows just how disingeuous the Republican party is

The ad in question:

MCCain never said where the cutoff point is, US soldiers are dying today and they could be dying in 100 years; where is the point where we say enough?  McCain hasn’t stated whether such a point exists.

War News

1073 Iraqis died in April (march had 1083), so the past two months have killed about 2/3rds of the people who died on 9/11; people who had nothing to do with the attack, so much for US making Iraq a better place

Fed cuts rates again

Fed cuts rates, claims last one for a while

My take:  I don’t buy it, consumer confidence and housing prices are down, foreclosures are up and the economy is stagnating with only a .6% growth rate in GDP. I think the claims of no more cuts, is too keep the dollar from free-falling and oil prices from rising above $120; its a PR move, nothing more.

Al-Qaeda reconstituting strength in Afghanistan and Pakistan

Well turns out Obama was right to tell us to focus on Pakistan and Afghtanistan:

Al-Qaeda Greatest threat to US

US report says al-Qaida gaining strength

Afghan al-Qaeda stronger

Some hilarious political cartoons

LMAO!

Bush and Cheney Reminisce

Who really answers the phone at 3 A.M.?

McCain continues to oppose Webb’s plan to help the troops

McCain proves once again that he is wrong for this country:

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/30/webb-mccain-is-so-full-of-it/

Politico reports today that Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) “are locked in an increasingly intense debate over a shared value: education benefits for veterans.” McCain has made “himself a target by refusing to endorse Webb’s new GI education bill and instead signing on to a Republican alternative.” McCain has charged that Webb’s Senate staff “has not been eager to negotiate” on the bill. “He’s so full of it,” Webb replied, adding, “I have personally talked to John three times. I made a personal call to [McCain aide] Mark Salter months ago asking that they look at this.”

My take:  McCain continues to pander in the public eye but refuses to back it up with real substance, he really is following Bush

War News

Death toll for US soldiers in April now at 46

GDP growth sluggish, beats forecasts

GDP (Gross Domestic Product), grew by .6% for the first quarter when adjusted for inflation, beating the .5% forecasted.  However this still shows a sputtering economy, as 3% is usually what is considered a healthy average growth rate in the US.

War News

War In Iraq:

April is the deadliest month in 2007 for our soldiers in Iraq

US says they are killing militants, but Iraqis say its actually civilians who are dying, my guess is that its probably more civilians than militants

Because if US forces were actually killing that many militants they would have probably won the fight for Sadr city by now, instead they are still stymied

Afghanistan, yup still there

And If Iraq and Afghanistan weren’t bad enough:

War With Iran possible ?

Dollar stabilizing?

The dollar finished up today and oil down, probably because of plans by the fed to stop cutting rates

I doubt this will dop the price below 100, but you might see around 110 tommorow if the fed follows through

Pollsters give me a headache

Arrrrgh, the pollsters are annoying me in Indiana

A new poll released today shows that the Democratic Presidential Primary race in Indiana is too close to call. The second Howey-Gauge Poll shows that Barack Obama leads Hillary Clinton 47 to 45 percent. Among likely Democratic voters, they are tied at 46 percent.

Okay so Obama’s slightly ahead…no wait

Public Policy Polling Clinton 50/Obama 42

SurveyUSA Clinton 52/Obama 43

Ok so Clinton’s ahead…no wait

Research 2000 Obama 48/Clinton 47

Selzer Obama 41/Clinton 38

Obama’s ahead

—————

Ok so to keep from getting dizzy I go to the RCP average, now this average is not perfect, because its just a straight average of the more recent polls, but its better than what we have at the moment, and they have: Clinton ahead by about 2.2 points

So it appears close but Obama has some ground to make up if he wants to overtake her

Obama Denouces his Pastor

On the heels of Former Reverend Wright’s appearance yesterday, Obama gave a press conference

The person I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago. His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate, and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church.

They certainly don’t portray accurately my values and beliefs. And if Reverend Wright thinks that that’s political posturing, as he put it, then he doesn’t know me very well. And based on his remarks yesterday, well, I might not know him as well as I thought, either.

“I have spent my entire adult life trying to bridge the gap between different kinds of people. That’s in my DNA, trying to promote mutual understanding to insist that we all share common hopes and common dreams as Americans and as human beings. That’s who I am, that’s what I believe, and that’s what this campaign has been about,” Obama said.

“I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened by the spectacle that we saw yesterday,” he said.

“I gave him the benefit of the doubt in my speech in Philadelphia, explaining that he has done enormous good in the church,” he said. “But when he states and then amplifies such ridiculous propositions as the U.S. government somehow being involved in AIDS; when he suggests that Minister Farrakhan somehow represents one of the greatest voices of the 20th and 21st century; when he equates the U.S. wartime efforts with terrorism – then there are no exuses. They offend me. They rightly offend all Americans. And they should be denounced, and that’s what I’m doing very clearly and unequivocally here today.”

“It is antithetical to my campaign. It is antithetical to what I’m about. It is not what I think America stands for,” he said.

Personally I support this, I respected his decsion not to renounce wright Last month in his Speech on Race, however at this point its was necessary, Wright had gone too far

The economy, no quick fixes

A New Gallup Poll on the Eonomy has 85% of people polledthe economic situation is getting worse

Not surprising considering the current situation:

Home Foreclosures have spiked

Gas is 3.60 a gallon

Food Prices are rising

However quick fixes like a Gas tax holiday are not smart Ideas

Whose the Better Cantidate?

Top map is Obama vs. McCain and the bottom Is Hillary vs McCain, the darker the shade the stronger the lead, and a white center is a statistical tie, while total white is an exact tie

From www.Electoral-vote.com

This is from www.fivethirtyeight.com, differences are due to varying map algorithms

Now what this says to me is that Hillary and Obama have Varying strengths, she’s better in the Northeast and in the large states, he’s stronger in the Midwest and the West Coast, but key is getting to 270 votes, right now she has it, but its possible he’ll have it as well; a lot of states for both are still in the margin of error.

Popular vote polls aren’t much better http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/national.html, they have the Democratic cantidates tied or leading McCain [Correction: Since I first posted this the daily Gallup for today came out with Obama 2 points behind McCain, whether this is the start of a trend or just a one day thing, remains to be seen], some have Obama polling better than Clinton against McCain, others have Clinton polling better.  Problem is most are within the margin of error, with a few exceptions showing Clinton outside the margin ahead of McCain, whether those are sighns of Clinton’s strength or just outliers remains to be seen.

In the end the best Judge of who is the right choice for the party comes down to whichever polls better in the states with close senate and house races, as the cantidate with better coattails can ensure a larger majority in Congress.

Thankfully Electoral-vote has a map for that as well

Senate Races

From here we can see that the Dems are going to want the cantidate who can run stronger in Colorado, Alaska, North Carolina, Minnesota and Georgia, as those are the states where the races have the best chance of tipping one way or the other, and with the exception of Georgia that is Obama.  He polls better in those regions with the close senate races, so his coattails and money will be more beneficial to the cantidates in those states.