A Glimmer Of Hope

With the election of Republican Saxby Chambliss in yesterday's runoff election in Georgia, the Democrats will be prevented from having a filibuster proof Senate, even if Al Franken does manage to steal Minnesota. This means that the Democrats will have a tiny roadblock in the way of extreme legislation they might want to pass.

Two "filibuster-worthy" pieces of legislation are already in the pipeline. The first is the so-called fairness doctrine which would force radio stations to give equal time to opposing opinions, aimed at killing conservative talk radio.

The second is the "card check" legislation which would allow a union to organize a workplace without the traditional secret ballot, breaking down a significant barrier to unionization.

Georgia has an interesting election rule that says a candidate must win 50% of the vote. In the November race, with several 3rd party candidates on the ballot, Chambliss won 49.8%, triggering yesterday's runoff.

An interesting aside: although this was a crucial election (or maybe because it was) pundits wondered aloud whether Barack Obama would risk spending political capital and go to Georgia to campaign for the Democrat. He didn't.

But Sarah Palin did. And her guy won.

Send In The Clown

Al Franken is challenging this ballot.

The Minnesota election is being stolen in broad daylight.

Good Riddance

Ted Stevens Loses Battle For Alaska Senate Seat

How Obama Got Elected

From Zogby:

On Election day twelve Obama voters were interviewed extensively right after they voted to learn how the news media impacted their knowledge of what occurred during the campaign. These voters were chosen for their apparent intelligence/verbal abilities and willingness to express their opinions to a large audience. The education level of the participants was 97.1% High School Graduate or higher, 55% College Graduates.

Campaign Finance Reform: DOA

The Federal Election Commission is unlikely to conduct a potentially embarrassing audit of how Barack Obama raised and spent his presidential campaign’s record-shattering windfall, despite allegations of questionable donations and accounting that had the McCain campaign crying foul.

Adding insult to injury for Republicans: The FEC is obligated to complete a rigorous audit of McCain’s campaign coffers, which will take months, if not years, and cost McCain millions of dollars to defend.

Obama is expected to escape that level of scrutiny mostly because he declined an $84 million public grant for his campaign that automatically triggers an audit and because the sheer volume of cash he raised and spent minimizes the significance of his errors. Another factor: The FEC, which would have to vote to launch an audit, is prone to deadlocking on issues that inordinately impact one party or the other – like approving a messy and high-profile probe of a sitting president.

Seems fair, no?

Election Season Irony

Wow! First Bill Ayers invokes private property privilege, then he calls the cops for protection. Today, he votes in the presidential election. Interesting actions for an avowed communist who tried to kill policemen.

Coming As No Surprise To Hillary Supporters

Obama gives McCain the finger.

Election Day Wrapup

At the last possible moment we find out:

1. Obama is willing to (in his own words) bankrupt the Coal industry.

2. In his own words, electricity rates will "skyrocket" under his energy plan.

3. Obama's Kenyan aunt is living illegally in public housing in Boston with his full knowledge and the complicity of his friend, Deval Patrick, the Governor of Massachusetts. (Tracked down by The Times of London, not the Boston Globe, the New York Times or any other American newspaper.)

4. The FBI is investigating the land deal between Obama and convicted felon Tony Rezko.

5. Sarah Palin is exonerated in the Trooper/Taser incident.

6. The New York Times discovers that there really are terrorists detained at Guantanamo. For the record, both Obama and McCain have pledged to close the base prison. Expect more revisionist articles now that Bush is leaving the scene.

7. Medical records prove that Palin did, indeed, give birth to Trig.

Exasperation with the American voter prompts me to point to a CNN report on a still-undecided voter whose core issue is abortion - he is pro-life, but still can't choose. Apparently he doesn't know the two candidates hold opposing views on this issue.

Palestra.com, a College Network has done some great investigative reporting into voter fraud including discovering that 14 temporary Obama campaign staffers from New York used the address of a house in Ohio to register to vote in that state. The latest revelation is an individual registered to vote in THREE states. What dismays me most about these reports is that the individuals who are breaking the law are educated, some with advanced degrees and are as old as 29. These aren't all idealistic "kids."

One last link: Obama debates himself.

I don't expect a McCain win. But if he does win, in spite of the voter fraud, the campaign donation fraud and the media bias, I think the Obama supporters will be shocked enough to raise hell. How much, and in what form, I don't want to speculate on.

OK, that's it. Today is the 29th anniversary of the takeover of the American Embassy in Tehran by Islamic militants and I happen to be reading "Guests of the Ayatollah" by Mark Bowden, which chronicles the 444 days the embassy staff were held hostage. That's how I plan to spend the day. Tomorrow I hope I can return to real life.

I'm Checking Out

I'm not looking forward to tomorrow night. I plan to watch movies then go to bed early. I wonder how far into Wednesday I can make it without knowing who won the election.

Why? Because I'm afraid we lose, no matter who wins. I'm scared to death of what the Democratic Trifecta will feel entitled to do to this country. I also fear the backlash when delirious Obama fans realize that he cannot cure all their ills. But if, by some miracle, John McCain wins, we will be in for four more years of assertions that this election was stolen and that America is too racist to elect a black man. Plus, we will have a leader who, although not as liberal as Obama, is not conservative.

No, I'm not looking forward to tomorrow night.

One Reason I Don't Like McCain

From Mickey Kaus:

Greg Sargent is shocked by John McCain's "lying." Those of us who opposed McCain's campaigns for illegal immigrant legalization--sorry, "comprehensive reform"--are maybe less shocked. McCain routinely lied during the immigration debate when it suited him--saying the illegals he legalized would "not be in any way rewarded for illegal behavior" (BS), that they'd have to go to the "back of the line behind everybody else" (not the most important line), and that he does "not support nor would I ever support any services provided to someone who came to this country illegally" (BS he does and BS he did). ... He got away with this serial dissembling because most reporters thought he was on the right and compassionate side of the issue. And, of course, that he got away with it may help explain why he dissembled in the first place--he knew he wouldn't be punished by the press if he deceived to get what he wanted. ... Now he knows he'll be punished, but he feels he has no choice (if he's going to get what he wants). ... That's a distinction, I guess. But not necessarily a moral one.

Notice there has been no discussion of illegal immigration during the campaign. I fear that's because the candidates essentially agree.

If (a very big if) McCain should win tomorrow, I will begin a letter writing campaign on this issue on Wednesday.

Earth To Democrats

The London Times reports:

Barack Obama’s senior advisers have drawn up plans to lower expectations for his presidency if he wins next week’s election, amid concerns that many of his euphoric supporters are harbouring unrealistic hopes of what he can achieve.

The sudden financial crisis and the prospect of a deep and painful recession have increased the urgency inside the Obama team to bring people down to earth, after a campaign in which his soaring rhetoric and promises of “hope” and “change” are now confronted with the reality of a stricken economy.

One senior adviser told The Times that the first few weeks of the transition, immediately after the election, were critical, “so there’s not a vast mood swing from exhilaration and euphoria to despair”.

Unrealistic hopes? Maybe they have this woman in mind.

Wait till they find out he's a politician like any other. He may turn a whole generation, all those starry-eyed kids, into non-voters.

Musical Chairs

Three American newspapers who have endorsed John McCain yesterday - The New York Post, The Washington Times and the Dallas Morning News - have had their reporters ousted from the Obama campaign plane. Classy.

You May Not Believe In Terrorists.....

but terrorists believe in you:

Referring to the US army's attacks in Pakistan and Syria, Larijani said they would not be answered with diplomatic protests.

"The US method and conduct, expressed by this aggression, will only be stopped by a clear-cut and unexpected response, whose grounds were set by the martyr Hussein Fahmida," Larijani said during a parliamentary session on Wednesday.

Fahmida was 13 when he detonated an explosive device he carried on him, destroying an Iraqi tank during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s.

What effect will this have on the election? Or on a President Obama's policy of meeting with Iran's leaders without preconditions? What does Iran hope to gain by making these threats now? What happens if we are attacked after the election but before the inarguration? Who knows?

Just Because He Asked A Question

After the last presidential debate, during which John McCain invoked Joe the Plumber’s anti-socialism shot heard ‘round the world, several taxpayer-subsidized employees in Ohio immediately rifled through government databases in search of damning information. The Columbus Dispatch identified Helen Jones-Kelley, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, as one of the dirt-diggers. She also happens to support Barack Obama and contributed the maximum amount to his presidential campaign.

On Wednesday, Jones-Kelley admitted that the records checks on Wurzelbacher that she approved were far more extensive than she first acknowledged. In addition to pawing through his child-support papers, the agency “also checked Wurzelbacher in its computer systems to determine whether he was receiving welfare assistance or owed unemployment compensation taxes.”

Jones-Kelley argued that plumbing the plumber’s information was no big deal because the agency always checks up on citizens who come into public light. Democratic Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland quickly pooh-poohed the civil-liberties infringements and denied any nefarious political motives.

If that doesn’t send a chill up your spine, you don’t have a spine.

(My emphasis.)

The evisceration of Sarah Palin was to be expected. Although it has not been applied equally to Sen. Obama and Sen. Biden, Gov. Palin was a legitimate target of scrutiny.

What did Joe Wurzelbacher do to invite scrutiny? He asked the man who is running for President of his country a question which that man answered badly.

Put yourself in his shoes. Do you really want the weight of the state and the press to be used against you just for asking a question?

Mmmmm Bub-bye

We'll miss ya like a front tooth!

Oh, and the tension is just killing other celebs.

I wonder, what happens at the $2M Victory Party if he doesn't win?

Remembering 1992

Ace Of Spades HQ is nostalgic:

Ahhhh, 1992.

The LA riots, a VP candidate misspells potato, Nirvana is top of the charts, Sinead O'Connor rips up the Pope's pic on SNL, Spike Lee gives Obama some of his favorite lines in Malcolm X, the economy slides into the clammy embrace of recession.

And a young presidential candidate puts a big bear hug around the electorate's largest demographic by repeatedly promising a middle class tax cut.

Now there are campaign promises and there are Campaign Promises. This one is historic because not only was it quickly broken, but within months it was replaced by the Largest Tax Increase In American History. Quite a switch --- did I mention that The Crying Game came out in 1992 as well?

Broken promises of middle class tax cuts? We'll meet again.

Ha. Well, if John McCain continues the Bush tax cuts, does that count as lowering taxes? Because, Obama is going to let them expire. Ach! I just can't figure that one out.

As Predicted

Remember the effigy of Sarah Palin hung in the yard of a family home? The response of authorities was:

We have been getting some phone calls complaining about it but if (the homeowner) isn't in violation of municipal code we have no reason to cite them," West Hollywood spokeswoman Helen Goss said.

"People have First Amendment rights (to free speech)," Goss said. "I would speculate that if it's part of a Halloween display then its political satire."

Got that? Free speech.

Yesterday a life sized effigy of Barack Obama was found hanging outside the Mines and Minerals Building on the University of Kentucky campus:

Police said they arrested Joe Fischer, 22, a senior at the university, and Hunter Bush, 21, a former student at Bluegrass Community and Technical College.

"This was a serious incident. It caused a lot of wounds to be opened from racial tension," Monroe said.

OK, which is it? Free speech or serious incident? If Obama is elected on Tuesday, will individuals be free to hang him in effigy repeatedly as they have George Bush over the last 8 years?

If You Have The Stomach For It

you can follow this link to Hot Air where they explain just how massive the donation deception is at the Obama campaign.

I Can Only Hope

With 2 1/2 days to go, we may still get the "October Surprise." Will it matter?

Now That It's Too Late To Do Anything About It...

Wow. Campbell Brown of all people:

You may have heard that Wednesday night Barack Obama will be on five different TV networks speaking directly to the American people.

He bought 30 minutes of airtime from the different networks, a very expensive purchase. But hey, he can afford it. Barack Obama is loaded, way more loaded than John McCain, way more loaded than any presidential candidate has ever been at this stage of the campaign.

Just to throw a number out: He has raised well over $600 million since the start of his campaign, close to what George Bush and John Kerry raised combined in 2004.

Without question, Obama has set the bar at new height with a truly staggering sum of cash. And that is why as we approach this November, it is worth reminding ourselves what Barack Obama said last November.

One year ago, he made a promise. He pledged to accept public financing and to work with the Republican nominee to ensure that they both operated within those limits.

Then it became clear to Sen. Obama and his campaign that he was going to be able to raise on his own far more cash than he would get with public financing. So Obama went back on his word. Video Watch Campbell Brown on Obama's campaign financing »

He broke his promise and he explained it by arguing that the system is broken and that Republicans know how to work the system to their advantage. He argued he would need all that cash to fight the ruthless attacks of 527s, those independent groups like the Swift Boat Veterans. It's funny though, those attacks never really materialized.

The Washington Post pointed out recently that the bad economy has meant a cash shortage among the 527s and that this election year they have been far less influential.

The courageous among Obama's own supporters concede this decision was really made for one reason, simply because it was to Obama's financial advantage.

On this issue today, former Sen. Bob Kerrey of Nebraska, an Obama supporter, writes in The New York Post, "a hypocrite is a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue -- who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings. And that, it seems to me, is what we are doing now."

For this last week, Sen. Obama will be rolling in dough. His commercials, his get-out-the-vote effort will, as the pundits have said, dwarf the McCain campaign's final push. But in fairness, you have to admit, he is getting there in part on a broken promise.

I can't help but notice, though, that she doesn't mention the possibility that a large percentage of these contributions might be illegal. She's not quite that courageous.