What she said

A delightfully witty letter to the editor of the Journal Times of Racine, Wis., via Wall Street Journal's Best of the Web:

I agree with Kim Morrison that Barack Obama would be a great president. I have hope that he can provide free health insurance for everyone.

I have hope that he can bring our soldiers home and make the world a safer place. I have hope that he can protect Americans from poverty by printing more money at the mints.

And, I have hope that he can make me a taller, more attractive, wealthier person, immune to all illnesses. The best part is that all of these will be accomplished at absolutely no cost to me.

Some skeptics would say that he can't do these things because he hasn't had enough leadership experience, foreign policy experience, or government experience. Some would say that Obama can't provide for all our needs without doubling taxes. And, some would say that he hasn't provided one piece of a specific plan to reach these goals.

Well, to those people I ask, "Where is your hope?"

All these years I've been creating accomplishments and gatherine [sic] experience to list on my resume. From now on, I'll just list my hopes and plans. All that work was so unnecessary.

Angie Smucker Racine
.

Politics made confusing

Found this chart on Lileks' blog.

Ordinarily I'm all about charts and graphs and data, but as a representation of the choice of who's the best to lead our country, this leads me into second-guess hell. Lileks points out that it's interesting that personal freedom and economic freedom are seen as competing values. I agree, except I'd use the word confusing. At least I have until November to figure out this chart.

I'd ch-ch-ch-change the channel but they're on all of them

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned ... except N.O.W. scorned

A press release from the New York State chapter of the National Organization for Women has this to say about Ted Kennedy, the gawd-help-us from Massachusetts, and his endorsement of Obama:

"Women have just experienced the ultimate betrayal. Senator Kennedy’s endorsement of Hillary Clinton’s opponent in the Democratic presidential primary campaign has really hit women hard. Women have forgiven Kennedy, stuck up for him, stood by him, hushed the fact that he was late in his support of Title IX, the ERA, and the Family and Medical Leave Act to name a few. Women have buried their anger that his support for the compromises in No Child Left Behind and the Medicare bogus drug benefit brought us the passage of these flawed bills."

Of course, the national NOW office later did a half-recant:

"The National Organization for Women has enormous respect and admiration for Sen. Edward Kennedy (D- Mass.). For decades Sen. Kennedy has been a friend of NOW, and a leader and fighter for women's civil and reproductive rights, and his record shows that.

"Though the National Organization for Women Political Action Committee has proudly endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton for president, we respect Sen. Kennedy's endorsement. We continue to encourage women everywhere to express their opinions and exercise their right to vote."

Mary Jo Kopechne could not be reached for comment.

Hillary packs the waterproof mascara...

On the heels of Obama's big win in these here parts on Saturday, we have this news coming out of Massachusetts (source: Politico, via Lucianne -- one of the "must-reads"):

"Rejecting a personal entreaty from President Bill Clinton, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy plans to endorse Barack Obama for president in a joint appearance on Monday, Democratic sources said."

Seeing as how we're heading into Super Tuesday, I'm guessing it's time for the tears to flow again from the feel-my-pain candidate.

Speaking of Democrats...

When is the next debate?

(Photo borrowed from Lucianne.com.)

Dumb things candidates say -- part 2

A posting on the LA Times blog reports that Hillary Clinton says she views the White House as something of a prison.

I found the link on Lucianne.com -- a news compilation site worth bookmarking. The story is one of the must-reads and has an editorial comment: "Tune in Friday if she's still a viable candidate."

One of the posters on Lucianne said, "I've got an idea, let's put her in prison and tell her it's the White House." Heh.

Read the story and tell me if it doesn't sound like she's working the "feel my pain" angle a little too hard.

They're heeeeere...

The GOP debate is tonight.

More info on this at the Post and Courier.




A sample of the South Carolina campaign stops:

Jan. 10
11 a.m.: Sen. Barack Obama, Charleston, The College of Charleston Cistern, George and St. Philip streets.
11:30 a.m.: Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Myrtle Beach, Croissants Bakery and Café, 3751 Grissom Parkway.
11:45 a.m.: Sen. John McCain, Greenville, Country Ham House, 214 Rutherford St.
6 p.m.: Former Sen. John Edwards, North Charleston, Lowcountry Food Bank, 1635 Cosgrove Ave.
6:45 p.m.: McCain, Myrtle Beach, Studebakers Restaurant, 2000 N. Kings Highway.
9 p.m.: Republican debate, Myrtle Beach Convention Center, 2101 North Oak St.

Jan. 11
10 a.m.: Sen. John McCain, Pawleys Island, Applewood House of Pancakes, 14361 Ocean Highway.
12:15 p.m.: McCain, Mount Pleasant, Alex's Restaurant, 302 Coleman Blvd.
4:15 p.m.: McCain, Summerville, Kelly's Barbeque, 10475 Highway 78.

Look at McCain's stops. One eatery after another. Heh.

I notice that Edwards will be at the Lowcountry Food Bank, where he undoubtedly will be telling everyone how he grew up in a tiny shack and he had to walk 10 miles to school in the snow uphill both ways with no shows because his momma and daddy had no money and he's just a poor little old country boy at heart, etc. I will not be there to witness it.

Dumb things candidates say

The presidential candidates are on their way to South Carolina, so now's the time to start my new hobby: collecting dumb comments made by the candidates -- although that'll probably prove such a task that I'll have to turn it into a full-time job. (Well, technically, the hobby is making snarky comments about what they said, but let us not split hairs.)

Today's first prize goes to Hillary Clinton for this comment after her win in NH:

"I listened to you, and in the process, I found my own voice."

Wait, had it been missing? Because I've been hearing it for months, usually shrill and pretentious and making very little sense.

The pundits say that her first-place finish is due to more women in NH voting for her than for Obama -- 47% to 34% -- which I guess means that women connect with Hillary getting all emotional. And the assumption that women categorically go for the emotional candidate offends me, although that's an emotional response, so never mind.

For the record, here are more stats: Male voters chose Obama over Hillary 40% to 29%. But more female voters than male voters -- 57% to 43% -- showed up to vote.

Second prize goes to John Edwards with this brilliant configuring of why he's not worried about coming in third -- twice so far:

"About a half of one percent (of all voters in the country) have voted. Ninety-nine-percent-plus have not voted."

I know that impromptu math problems are not easy, but this is not a struggle to do in your head. 100% minus 1/2% is 99-1/2% who have not voted.

Here's a word problem, Mr. Edwards: If a candidate repeatedly does not gain enough votes to place among the top two spots, how many days remain in his campaign before he figures out how to take Train A going 50 miles per hour back home? We'll wait while you get your calculator.