Clipmarks | masbury's 'elections' clips

Obama bounces: now 51-36 over McCain

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 00:15:27 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: more trusted in every category; far ahead of where Kerry or Gore were at this point in campaign

Clip Source: www.newsweek.com

Barack’s Bounce

The latest NEWSWEEK Poll shows the Democrat with a 15-point lead over McCain.

A new NEWSWEEK Poll shows that he has a substantial double-digit lead, 51 percent to 36 percent, over McCain among registered voters nationwide.

In the previous NEWSWEEK Poll, completed in late May

Obama managed no better than a 46 percent tie with McCain

55 percent of all voters call themselves Democrats or say they lean toward the party while just 36 percent call themselves Republicans or lean that way

Obama is running much stronger at this point in the race than his two most recent Democratic predecessors, Sen. John Kerry and Vice President Al Gore

Kerry led Bush by only 6 points

Gore was in a dead heat with Bush

Clip Source: www.newsweek.com

Women voters in the new poll prefer him over McCain by 21 points

Democratic leaners who supported Clinton during the primaries now favor Obama over McCain by 69 percent to 18 percent

Registered independents

backing him by a 48 percent to 36 percent

economy and jobs

54 percent to 29 percent

Tags: elections, politics, obama, mccain

Gore: Obama more experienced than Kennedy, Jefferson, Madison

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:56:02 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Regarding experience, after citing Kennedy (2 yrs younger), he continues: “To exclude from positions of trust and command all those below the age of 44 would have kept Jefferson from writing the Declaration of Independence, Washington from commanding the Continental Army, Madison from fathering the Constitution..."

Clip Source: cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com

Gore endorses Obama, warns ‘elections matter’

urging Americans to reject what he called the Bush administration’s legacy of “incompetence, negligence and failure

Gore took direct aim at criticism by some that the 46-year-old freshman senator from Illinois lacks the experience necessary for the job by citing similar criticisms of John F. Kennedy, who was two years younger than Obama is now when he took the oath of office in 1961.

“To exclude from positions of trust and command all those below the age of 44 would have kept Jefferson from writing the Declaration of Independence, Washington from commanding the Continental Army, Madison from fathering the Constitution and Christopher Columbus from even discovering America,” said Gore, who lost to George W. Bush in the bitterly fought 2000 contest.

Tags: obama, politics, gore

McCain won't be the candidate in November

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 02:35:30 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Interesting theory . . .

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

McCain will not be the Republican candidate in November.

John McCain will announce that he has decided that he can not accept

The reason will be health releated

The reasons are simple. He can't win

some Democrats that think the Republicans are planning to let McCain lose and 'sit this one out'

But that just isn't how they play

So, who will be the Republican Candidate

Condoleezza Rice (Secretary of State)
Colin Powel (fmr Sec. of State)
Marilyn Musgrave (Colorado Congresswoman)
Mitt Romney (fmr Massachusetts Governor)
Mike Huckabee (fmr Governor of Arkansas)
Charlie Crist (Florida Gov. )
Tim Pawlenty (Minnesota Governor)
Bobby Jindal (Louisiana Gov.)
Mark Sanford: (Governor of South Carolina)
John Thune (Senator from South Dakota)
Dick Lugar (Senator from Indiana)
Chuck Hagel (Senator from Nebraska
MIchael Bloomberg (nyc Mayor)

They'll come on the scene late, with a press corps that is looking for a horse race and a new story

Tags: mccain, elections, politics

Fox apologizes 3rd time; No "whitey" video exists

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:24:54 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Oops, we did it again.

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Fox forced to apologise to Obama for third time in two weeks

Rupert Murdoch's Fox News television station has been forced to apologise to Barack Obama for the third time in a fortnight after screening a racially tinged caption referring to his wife Michelle as his "baby mama".

Bill Shine, senior vice president of programming at Fox, said

a producer "exercised poor judgment"

The term is slang for a woman who has a baby with a man who is neither her partner nor boyfriend

Obama established a website

debunking a persistent rumour that there is a video showing her speaking from the pulpit of the Trinity church in Chicago in which she allegedly refers to whites as "whitey". He said she had never spoken at Trinity or used such a phrase.

just over a week after

Obama, in a show of affection, lightly touched his fist against Michelle's and the anchorwoman referred to it as a "terrorist fist jab".

Previously, a Fox contributor Liz Trotta had to apologise after making a joke about Obama being assassinated.

Tags: obama, elections

Obama instructs DNC: No lobbyist money

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 22:12:43 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Fed govt lobbyist money banned from DNC fundraising; freedom from influence of Washington insiders sought

Clip Source: www.rawstory.com

DNC bans lobbyist money

DNC will no longer take lobbyist, PAC money consistent with Obama's position

In his first order of business as his party's presumed presidential nominee, Barack Obama is instructing the Democratic National Committee to adopt his policy against accepting donations from federal lobbyists or political action committees.

The change will make the party and the candidate have a consistent position. Obama often says banning the donations is one way to help keep him free of the influence of Washington insiders.

McCain's senior advisers are former lobbyists, including campaign manager Rick Davis, and McCain was stung last month by the disclosure that two advisers worked for a firm that had represented Myanmar's military junta, which has restricted foreign assistance for cyclone victims.

Tags: obama, elections

McCain's Annapolis class rank? 894 out of 899

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:19:57 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: This is breaking new ground: he could be the first President from the bottom of his class. [By comparison, Obama's rank at Harvard Law: 1]

Clip Source: www.236.com

What do you call the person who graduates fifth from the bottom of his class at Annapolis? The Republican Party nominee for President. That's right. Senator John McCain actually graduated 894th out of 899 middies at the Naval Academy. Only five other crew cuts achieved less than John McCain did in his class at Annapolis.

Tags: mccain, obama, elections

World cheers Obama as nominee

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 22:17:31 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: "Difference in tone" from Bush years welcome

Clip Source: www.rawstory.com

In Kenya, home to Obama's family on his father's side, the Kenya Times newspaper devoted its front page to the story, under the headline "Obama makes history."

Mexico City, hairdresser Susan Mendoza's eyes lit up

"Bush was for the elite. Obama is of the people," she said.

many Germans "find (Obama's) mixture of Martin Luther King and John F. Kennedy very attractive."

The Times of London

Obama's campaign "has rekindled America's faith in its prodigious powers of reinvention — and the world's admiration for America."

France's Le Monde said

demonstrated that American democracy is not doomed to being confiscated by a narrow political class, financed by lobbies and piloted by communication experts."

A Chinese scholar said that while he did not expect major changes in U.S. foreign policy, an Obama White House would have a very different tone from a Bush one.

Many Asians welcomed the selection of a candidate perceived as more aware of the world outside U.S. borders than Bush

Tags: obama, elections, politics

McCain: No one has supported Bush on Iraq more than I have

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:22:00 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Video documenting McCain's pitches of Bush policy

Clip Source: www.dailykos.com

You will hear from my opponent's campaign in every speech, every interview, every press release that I'm running for President Bush's third term. You will hear every policy of the President described as the Bush-McCain policy. Why does Senator Obama believe it's so important to repeat that idea over and over again? Because he knows it's very difficult to get Americans to believe something they know is false.

[Video]

Tags: mccain, bush, politics, elections

McCain pitches himself as change, green, competence candidate

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 04:54:16 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: But voted with Bush 95% of the time: are we to believe the record or the rhetoric?

Clip Source: www.dailykos.com

In a setting that highlighted McCain's discomfort, with a venue that came across like a half-filled high school auditorium, John McCain pretended to the the candidate of change, and pretended that Barack Obama was the status quo candidate. That incompetence was the problem with the Bush administration. That he, McCain, is the green candidate with a green background. That John McCain will take the country in a new direction, different than where Republicans have gone before. And John McCain knew it all along.

Why wait until November, John? You voted with Bush 95% of the time this year. You served birthday cake while New Orleans drowned, then voted against Katrina relief. And, frankly, based on what you've done and not what you say tonight, why would anyone on either side of the aisle believe you?

Tags: mccain, bush, elections

Bill may be roadblock to Hillary-as-VP

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 04:40:52 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: "having Bill on the campaign trail and in the White House is the most problematic thing about bringing Hillary onto the ticket"

Clip Source: www.motherjones.com

The Biggest Hillary-as-VP Problem? Bill

Bill Clinton is heading back to his Harlem office while Clinton makes the VP pitch. As Tom Brokaw said, "the former president really has become radioactive in a lot of ways." There is his finances — his consulting fees, his speech fees, his donation fundraising, his businessmen pals. There is his philandering — a distraction again these last few days because of a gossipy Vanity Fair article. And there is his mouth — which is connected to a brain that seems to think it holds the answer to every question, and is allowed to expressed that answer at all times.

I honestly think the prospect of having Bill on the campaign trail and in the White House is the most problematic thing about bringing Hillary onto the ticket

Tags: clinton, obama, elections, politics

45 Repub House seats surveyed; may lose half

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:43:14 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Democratic pollsters are predicting that the GOP could lose nearly as many seats this time around as they did two years ago, when Democrats picked up 31 seats

Clip Source: rawstory.com

After surveying voters in 45 Republican House districts, Democratic pollsters are predicting that the GOP could lose nearly as many seats this time around as they did two years ago, when Democrats picked up 31 seats to regain the Congressional majority for the first time in 12 years.

Greenberg predicted Democratic pickups in about half of the 45 districts surveyed.

Overall, the poll found that President Bush was extremely unpopular in these Republican battleground districts, with just one in three voters approving of his job performance. Furthermore, 75 percent of voters surveyed feel the country is on the wrong track. Approval ratings for Republican incumbents in these districts also has slipped to 38 percent in the latest poll.

The pollsters also tested predicted Republican attacks, specifically trying to tie Obama to the House nominees and found that they caused virtually no shift in the overall support for the Democrat.

Tags: elections, politics

McCain vs Obama, by state maps, as of June 3

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 20:50:14 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: 2nd map shows states with <10 point difference

Clip Source: www.dailykos.com

For June 3rd, the tally is Obama 283, McCain 255.

Now, here's the map showing races in which the candidates are within 10 points of each other, in yellow:

The tally on that map is Obama 173, McCain 144, and Tossup 221. Actually, the map and this tally don't quite add up -- I've placed Nebraska's 1st and 2nd CD's in the toss-up category, but three of the state's EV's are solidly in McCain territory.

of those tossup states, 15 are Red states, and only six are Blue states

Tags: elections, mccain, obama, politics, maps

Clinton winding down Tuesday night?

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 01:25:23 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Astonishing, conciliatory developments

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Hillary Clinton has summoned top donors and backers to attend her New York speech tomorrow night in an unusual move that is being widely interpreted to mean she plans to suspend her campaign

Obama and Clinton spoke Sunday night and agreed that their staffs should begin negotiations over post-primary activities

Clinton is known to want Obama to assist black officials who endorsed her and who are now taking constituent heat

Earlier in the day it was reported that Clinton staffers were being urged by the campaign's finance department "to turn in their outstanding expense receipts by the end of the week,"

Politico wrote that members of Clinton's advance staff had received calls and emails Sunday night, summoning them to New York City and telling them their roles on the campaign are ending.

Tags: clinton, obama, elections, politics

Joan Garry: I left Hillary Clinton, My "Ex"

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 01:14:43 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Honest, irenic writing by an ardent Clinton supporter - just excellent - I admire this piece greatly - reads even better in context

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Just before the New Jersey primary, I left Hillary for Barack. At first, I felt like I was cheating on her. I was emotionally connected to her candidacy, her intelligence, her perseverance. As time went on, I began to listen more closely to Obama and became increasingly convinced that he might just be the real deal. He might just be able to restore optimism and hope and good will about America around the world. He might just have a better shot at beating McCain.

And so I cast my vote for Obama and in so doing, I left Hillary.

And while I am beyond ecstatic about having Senator Obama as our nominee, I find myself feeling really terrible about Hillary.

I have no doubt that Obama will give the speech of his life tomorrow night. I bet I will cry thinking about the magnitude of the moment and the promise it represents.

I will cry during her speech too. I'm actually dreading it. I think it will be heartbreaking. It will remind me that I left her.

Tags: clinton, obama, elections, politics

Prominent Clinton supporters back off

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:04:12 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Starting with Tom Vilsack, nat'l Clinton co-chair:

Clip Source: www.motherjones.com

Prominent Clinton Backers Slowly Backing Off

Here's former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack:

After Tuesday's contests, she needs to acknowledge that he's going to be the nominee and quickly get behind him."

Florida Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz:

"It would be most beneficial if we resolved this nomination sooner rather than later...

Former national party chairman Donald Fowler, on whether to appeal the Michigan/Florida decision:

my answer to that is not only no but, hell no... What good does it do? What good does it do anybody?

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, on the same:

"I think it's outrageous they took four delegates away from her... But I think with 170 delegates separating them, it’s not worth making the case."

Harold Ickes

"It'll be over when one candidate secures the number for the nomination." Ickes admitted that the race could be over this week

Tags: clinton, obama, elections