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Ron Paul raised a lot of money. You’d think, with his army of supporters, he’d be able to have a proper and good look ad. He was running for President after all.
Instead, what did he come up with?
This high class ad. I think it had the worst acting this side of a C-grade horror film.
There are few things more annoying than political analysts who don’t know anything yet control the airwaves by giving an opinion and analysis that’s no more educated than that of a low IQ St. Bernard.
The only thing more annoying than this are loud talk radio hosts who don’t know anything.
Well, Chris Matthews was fed-up too when he had host Kevin James on his show. See what happens when James attacks Obama for appeasing like Chamberlain did before WWII, but, when called upon to offer facts, has nothing.
It’s good watching.
Tags: Appease, Barack Obama, Chris Matthews, Chris Matthews Kevin James, Conservative Talk Radio, Hardball, Kevin James, Kevin James Hardball, starked, StarkedDCWell, it’s official, West Virginia doesn’t like Barack Obama. How could that be? Leave it to Jon Stewart to give an honest assessment.
Tags: Hussein, Jon Stewart, Obama, Racist, The Daily Show, West Virginia, West Virginia Primary Video, West Virginia Results
Well, the day I post an old video of Edwards, he comes out and endorses Obama. Thus, I think it’s fair that I take credit for the endorsement.
So, what does Edwards’ endorsement actually mean at this point? Probably very little, at least from a vote getting sense. There are only a few states left, none of which, besides Kentucky, have a Southern blue-collar vote. Still, if Edwards is to campaign in Kentucky, perhaps he can close Obama’s losing magrin there, not that it really matters.
Instead, Edwards’ endorsement was perhaps most important based on the timing of it. While Clinton had filmed many interviews yesterday, amidst her huge win in West Virginia, Edwards endorsed right during the evening news, taking away all the positive momentum Clinton gained from West Virginia. This timing just isn’t a fluke in politics.
Still, Edwards is exactly the kind of guy Obama wants on his side in states like North Carolina and Virginia come fall.
The way it also helps Obama is that Edwards still has delegates pledged to him. With his endorsement, Edwards has advised those delegates to vote for Obama. As of this afternoon, 8 of those delegates have now pledged themselves to Obama, meaning he’s even closer to the magic number, officially ending the race.
Further blows to Clinton came as the UAW and NARAL endorsed Obama within the last 24 hours as well.
That leaves Obama needing 135.5 delegates to get to 2,026, according to NBC News.
Tags: 2008 Democratic Primary, Clinton, Edwards Endorses Obama, John Edwards, Obama, starked, StarkedDCPerhaps one of the most painful ads from this political season was Rudy Giuliani trying to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.
One word:
OIF.
I have to admit, I like John Edwards. He seems like a pretty decent guy. Today’s video features an issue that seemed to dog Edwards throughout much of last year. What was that issue?
His hair.
In the middle of the campaign, it was revealed that John Edwards spent $400 on his haircuts. Really?
Well, this video is obviously tongue and cheek, but, with over a million views, it certainly didn’t help his cause.
In the least climactic race of the season, West Virginia has gone for Hillary Clinton. Looking at the exit polls, it may get very close to that 40 point margin that I predicted yesterday.
In even less shocking news, 20% of West Virginia voters openly admitted that race was important to their vote. These voters obviously voted for Clinton with 90% of the vote.
Meanwhile…the results don’t change a thing. The primary remains as dead as ever, the Clinton campaign gets one more day in the spotlight.
Also, Obama now needs just a few more pledged delegates to officially say that they’ve won 50% of the pledged delegates, meaning, officially, there is NO way Clinton can catch him. (As of now, she’d need to win something like 172 of the remaining 190 pledged delegates, something that is not even mathematically possible.)
So, hopefully we’re only a few days from ending this thing and moving on to the general election. I know I’m ready to bid adieu to this primary season.
UPDATE:
Well, with 97% reporting, Hillary Clinton’s margin seems to be 41 points, 67-26. Looking back at my prediction of a 40 point margin…it doesn’t seem I did too bad. I’m now averaging being within a margin of 3.25 points or so per race.
And goodnight for now…
Tags: 2008, Clinton, Obama, Primary Results, starked, StarkedDC, West Virginia, White VotersAs someone with family members in WV, PA, and OH, all I’ve heard about is “Barack Obama’s a Muslim”
Few things are more ridiculous. There are so many problems.
1) Obama is a Christian, and not a Muslim. It just proves the ignorance that is abound in over 30 million Americans who believe this. Oh the power of internet spam e-mails.
2) Even if a candidate were Muslim, who cares!? What, now candidates shouldn’t be elected because of their religion? This was supposedly a problem for Kennedy being Catholic in 1960. Why would that be a problem? Prejudice. Mitt Romney being a Mormon faced prejudice this year. And Lieberman in 2000 faced prejudice for being Jewish in 2000.
Enough is enough.
But, proving how ignorant some voters are, above is a clip from a voter on Good Morning America this morning.
Tags: Christian, GMA, GMA Obama Muslim, Good Morning America, Good Morning America West Virginia Obama Muslim, Muslim, Obama Christian, Obama Muslim, West Virginia PrimaryAs we’re quickly approaching the official end of the primary season, we have
no more than 2-3 months before John McCain and Barack Obama announce their VP choices. So, who’s it going to be?
Well, we’ll start with their top ten, and narrow it down until we come up with a decision. Of course, your opinions will be necessary to do so.
Let’s begin:
John McCain’s Options: Barack Obama’s Options:
1. Bobby Jindal - Gov. of Louisiana 1. Kathleen Sebelius - Gov. of Kansas
2. Charlie Crist - Gov. of Florida 2. Michael Bloomberg (I) - Mayor, NYC
3. Haley Barbour - Gov. of Miss. 3. Wesley Clark - Fmr. Military General
4. Mitt Romney - Fmr. Gov. of Mass 4. Tim Kaine - Gov. of Virginia
5. Tim Pawlenty - Gov. of Minn. 5. Bill Richardson - Gov. of New Mexico
6. Condeleeza Rice - Sec. of State 6. Brad Henry - Gov. of Oklahoma
7. Rob Portman - Rep. from OH 7. Chuck Hagel (R) - Sen. from Nebraska
8. Joe Lieberman (I) - Sen. from CT 8. Sam Nunn - Fmr. Senator from Georgia
9. Marsha Blackburn - Rep. from TN 9. Ed Rendell - Gov. of Pennsylvania
10. Jim DeMint - Sen. from SC 10. Evan Bayh - Sen. from Indiana
Here’s a rundown:
MCCAIN’S:
BOBBY JINDAL: As the youngest governor out there, it’s a nice contrast to McCain. Additionally, he’s staunchly far to the right and is the only Indian-American Governor, an added diversity to the ticket.
CHARLIE CRIST: Florida, Florida, Florida. Crist would take Florida off the map as an electoral option for Obama. He is also more youthful and well spoken, a nice compliment.
HALEY BARBOUR: A popular Southern governor who received credit for his actions after Katrina. He’s got the Southern street-cred, and he’s well regarded within conservative circles.
MITT ROMNEY: Oh Mitt Romney. He’s popular with some party insiders, but he’s also unpopular with some conservatives and those who still didn’t warm to his Mormon faith. Still, Romney could certainly help bring in some money, is considered stronger on the economy, and could help win states like CO and NV, states with a large Mormon vote.
TIM PAWLENTY: A young appealing governor from Minnesota, he could certainly help in winning over IA, MN, and WI. The RNC convention is being held there after all. (There is an odd report though coming from the Huffington Post where Pawlenty awkwardly joked that his wife won’t have sex with him. Will that cost him the slot?)
CONDELEEZA RICE: As an African-American woman, she certainly seems to help in those two demographics. She also remains quite popular even with her connections to Bush and Iraq. Still, she has just that, connections to Bush and Iraq. Not good.
ROB PORTMAN: The only legitimate option from OH, Portman is a good friend of McCain’s and a relatively solid conservative.
JOE LIEBERMAN: McCain’s biggest backer, and he’s a former VP candidate for the Democrats! Would be interesting for McCain to add a former Dem and now Independent candidate to his ticket. Still, what could be more boring then the elder McCain complimented by the monotone elder Lieberman?
MARSHA BLACKBURN: A conservative Southerner, picking a woman may be a great idea for McCain. Additionally, she’s young and attractive, serving as a nice contrast.
JIM DEMINT: A popular and more youthful Senator, he could certainly help sure up Southern conservative support. Still, he’s noted for some strong anti-homosexual and single mother comments.
OBAMA’S:
KATHLEEN SEBELIUS: Perhaps the top choice. An avid Obama backer, they share the Kansas connection. She also helps bring in the female vote as well as playing well in the Midwest as she is a moderate Democrat. A great speaker, she’s tough to beat. The only thing that is lacking is her foreign policy experience.
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG: Like Sebelius, it seems he really likes Barack, and Barack likes him. An economic expert, it’d be a great addition in such a bad economy. Additionally, as an independent, he’d certainly help Obama in a unity sense. He also helps wrap up the Jewish vote in PA and FL.
WESLEY CLARK: A big-time Clinton Guy, Clark would bring some party unity. Additionally, he’s from the South and has a lot of foreign policy experience. A popular option.
TIM KAINE: While Jim Webb’s name is abound, I doubt they’ll take him out of the Senate. Tim Kaine is a catholic that could help carry VA, PA, and OH.
BILL RICHARDSON: He really is a perfect compliment. He’s a governor with plenty of foreign policy experience. He’s also pro-gun and could help win the Southwest and maybe even put Texas in play. Still, could it be too much diversity on the ticket for blue collar voters in OH and PA? Sadly, prejudice is still high.
BRAD HENRY: You don’t hear his name much in the VP picks so far, but Henry is very popular in the most red of states. He’s well spoken and a moderate Dem. Watch out for him.
CHUCK HAGEL: An interesting pick. Chuck Hagel is a disenfranchised Republican Senator with plenty of foreign policy experience. Could seal the nomination if there was such a daring pick.
SAM NUNN: As an old conservative Southern Dem, Nunn could give Obama appeal in the Midwest and South. He also has plenty of foreign policy experience to balance Obama. Could he even put Georgia and NC in play?
ED RENDELL: An avid Clinton guy, he has a great operation in PA. He’d likely help lock up PA and NJ while also helping in OH and MI.
EVAN BAYH: An avid Clinton supporter and more moderate, pro-life Dem, he could help in IN, OH, PA, and MI.
Your turn…who am I missing? Who do you think should be at the top of the list?
Tags: Choices, McCain VP, Obama VP, Obama VP Choices, starked, starked dc, VeepstakesAccording to The Greenville News in South Carolina, James Carville, the staunchest Clinton ally out there, has finally admitted that Obama is likely to be the democratic nominee. At that time, he’ll be sure to write Obama a check. 
As far as who should be his running mate, he floats four names: Clinton herself, Gen. Wesley Clark (avid Clinton supporter), Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebilius, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City, an Independent.
With this, later today, I’ll post the initial list of the top ten options for VP for both Obama and McCain.
(Photo: CNN)
Tags: 2008, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, James Carville, starked, StarkedDC, Veepstakes, VPEveryone’s always made fun of Dennis Kucinich. He’s a funny looking little guy, what’s not to make fun of? As the standard bearer for far left politicians, Kucinich has still always stood for those on the progressive left.
As little chance as he had, Kucinich didn’t deserve to be made fun of by Tim Russert in this way, when Tim Russert says, “And I mean this as a serious question.”
What’s the question: Has Dennis Kucinich seen a UFO?
Still, Kucinich answered the question as best he could.
Also included is Obama’s more mainstream but still funny response that the crowd loved.
I gotta put this up there as one of the funniest moments from the campaign.
That’s right. It’s Monday night. What does that mean? It means Primary Prediction time!
This week is simply not as much fun as the others. It’s West Virginia, and that’s it. According to the polls, Clinton has a lead of anywhere from 35-45 points. Sheesh, it sounds like a tight one, no?
According to polls out of West Virginia and Kentucky, upwards of 30% of Democrats, DEMOCRATS!, admit they will not vote for Obama because he is black.
Sigh. And this is just the amount that are being honest. What’s further amazing is that a lot of these voters admit it publicly, their name being properly displayed in the newspapers.
It’s clear that Obama is not planning on winning either of these two states in the fall. It also seems clear that he doesn’t need them.
So, what’s my prediction? Depending on how I break down the numbers, I have Clinton getting anywhere from 68-71 points.
Let’s call it:
CLINTON 70 - OBAMA 30
There you have it, a 40 point win for Clinton.
For those of you keeping track, I called it a 7 point Clinton win in Pennsylvania, she won by a little over 9.
I called it a Clinton victory in IN, predicting a six point margin. It ended up being just two points.
Finally, I called it an 8 point margin for Obama in NC. It ended up going his way by 14.
So, overall, I’ve averaged being within four points of the actual margin. With that, my track record would presume that Clinton will be between 68-72 points while Obama will be at 28-32.
We’ll see how I do in just a matter of hours, stay tuned!
Tags: Clinton, Dem Primary Race, Obama, Polls, Primary Predictions, starked, StarkedDC, West Virginia PrimaryAh yes, Bill O’Reilly, what a great guy. We all know that he’s gone on tirades before, but this is about as good as it gets.
While it has been pulled on YouTube, you can find the video from his days at Inside Edition over at the Huffington Post here:
DELEGATES:
The numbers continue to trickle toward Obama. Today, all major news networks are now confirming that Obama has overtaken Hillary in the superdelegate count. While long ahead in pledged delegates, he now leads amongst the party elite as well. Today, he has out gained Clinton 4-0 in new commits.
The overall count is now: Obama 1,869-1,702.5
That means Obama is now only 156 delegates away from the nomination. He is likely to pick up 10-12 more delegates in the state of West Virginia tomorrow.
A Legitimate Third Party:
A problem on the horizon for John McCain. Today, Bob Barr, the Fmr. (R) Congressman from Georgia, announced that he will be running for the Libertarian Party.
To be competitive, Barr would first have to win the Libertarian Party’s nomination. But, if he does (they start electing their candidate on the 22nd), he could be a real problem for McCain.
Though not a Ross Perot type, Barr could easily pick up more than Ralph Nader; I’m thinking 3-5 points. Still, if he’s able to get in debates or raise more money, he could be at the 4-8 point level.
This would be incredibly painful for McCain as he can not afford to lose any of the conservative vote. This would especially cost him in some Southern states such as Georgia, North Carolina, and Mississippi where Barr could likely pick up the high single digits, putting those states well into play for Obama.
Stay tuned, this could be a doozy of a third party candidacy.
(Photos from the AP)
Tags: Bob Barr, Bob Barr President, starked, StarkedDC, Superdelgates, Third Party 2008MoveOn, who has endorsed Obama, held a contest where regular people would submit their own Barack Obama ad.
Here’s the winner, playing up the “I’m a Republican, and I’m voting for Barack Obama” type ad.
According to MoveOn and NBC News, it’s going to air in CO, OH, and WI.
Overall, I think it’s just ‘okay.’ Certainly doesn’t hurt, but pretty standard fare.
Tags: 2008, ad, Hillary, McCain, moveon, moveon Obama ad, Obama, presidential adsAfter yesterday’s Mitt Romney terrorism ad, I figured I’d follow it up with one of Joe Biden’s best moments from the campaign.
Here, Biden attacks Rudy Giuliani, explaining the diction of Giuliani in every sentence he speaks:
With the primary schedule winding down and an Obama vs. McCain race setting in, it’s time to look at the political map to see what states the two candidates will likely target.
Though I’ll hold off on a full breakdown until the Dem primary race is officially over, let’s do a quick breakdown.
Here’s where I think the states currently fall:
McCain Safe: (135) AL, AR, AZ, ID, GA, KS, KY, LA, OK, SD, TN, TX, UT, WV, WY
Lean McCain: (85) AK, FL, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, SC
Toss-Up: (102) IN, MI, NM, NV, OH, PA, VA, WI
Lean Obama: (43) CO, IA, MA, NJ
Obama Safe: (173) CA, CT, D.C., DE, HI, IL, MD, ME, MN, NY, OR, RI, VT, WA
So, overall, if the election were held today, I break it down as:
McCain: 220 - Obama 216 with 102 votes in the toss-up category.
So, if this is correct, we’re currently sitting in a very tight race, which seems consistent with the polls that show a 1-3 point margin for Obama.
Some general notes: I currently have CO, and IA as lean Obama’ states. These were Bush states in 2004, but I feel like they are leaning more blue than just a general toss-up. Obama does very well in CO and he’s quite popular in IA whereas John McCain has never been favored there.
I also have the perennial toss-up state of MN safely in his camp as well. RNC Convention or not, Obama is popular there, and it still leans left.
The toss-ups: IN: Obama polls well here, and it’s a neighboring state. Could this Republican state of the Great Lakes actually turn more moderate this year like its neighbors? MI, OH, WI, and PA. These classic big, blue collar great lake area states are always up for grabs and, at this point, the polls are virtually tied in all of them. The economy is a huge issue here, so it seems difficult for McCain to win, but Obama needs to pull in those white blue collar voters who, up until this point, are still the type of Democrats questioning if he’s patriotic, if he’s a Muslim, and if he’s tied to radical liberals. (I would know, I’m from there. It’s amazing how many Democratic family members I have who still swear he’s a Muslim, their e-mails say so.)
NM and NV are part of that crucial Southwest vote. McCain is from there, but Barack is popular there. They’ve been shifting more liberal, but they remain toss-ups for now.
VA: This southern state has becoming more blue over the past few years. Still, it’s a conservative blue. Obama’s popular here, but it certainly is a toss-up.
For now, FL, MO, and NH, classic battleground states, are certainly leaning toward McCain. FL has a much older electorate that is becoming more Conservative, MO still leans to the right, and McCain has always been popular in NH.
That’s it for now. As the polls come in and the news change, we’ll make changes whenever they come in to see if either candidate can get to the magical number of 270.
They’re certainly not there yet.
It’s good to see that SNL still has it. There’s nothing to even say here except, if you want a laugh, take a look.
Tags: 2008, Clinton, Funny Campain Videos, Hillary Clinton, Obama, Saturday Night Live Hillary Video, SNL, starked dc Oliver Stone. A loved and hated filmmaker. Famous for his political commentaries in NIXON and JFK, he’s always had a fancy for past presidents. Still, his newest inkling is to make a film on a current President, George W. Bush.
Already in the middle of production on the piece, which is set for release next year, Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men) is set to play W himself. With this photo from Entertainment Weekly, it’s clear that they’ve put Mr. Brolin through some very serious make-up, and, I have to say, they’ve done a pretty good job.
Other Cast notables:
Laura Bush: Elizabeth Banks
Condoleeza Rice: Thandie Newton (M:I 2, Crash)
Tony Blair: Ioan Gruffudd (Fanastic Four)
Ari Fleischer: Rob Corddrey (HAHA! From the Daily Show, this is great)
George H.W. Bush: James Cromwell
Barbara Bush: Ellen Burstyn (Too good to be true)
Colin Powell: Jeffrey Wright (Syriana)
Sigh.
Many Republicans like scaring the public. The more they talk about terrorism, the more they win. Errr…well, discounting 2006, and so far in the special elections of 2008.
So, our first politician to get back to back funnies is Mitt Romney, in his attempt to be the most Republican of Republican candidates.
How does he do this? With an ad that his campaign seriously called, “Jihad.”
I’ve posted the actual ad first, followed up by the SNL spoof where they don’t even change the ad, but use an appropriate laugh track. It’s just too much…
ORIGINAL AD:
WITH LAUGH TRACK:
Right now, the only thing Hillary can hope for is a miracle. She needs a vast surge in superdelegate support to make it to the magic number of 2,025. The last thing she can afford is to lose delegates, but that’s exactly what’s occurring.
While Clinton made the positive step of gaining one superdelegate today, she also LOST two superdelegates from the Virgin Islands who switched their support to Obama.
That gives Obama a gain of 5 delegates today versus a net loss of 1 for Clinton.
And the Clinton dream just gets further and further away as Obama is now only 161 delegates away from claiming official victory, not just in pledged delegates but in the race in its entirety.
It seems the fat lady is singing…
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