Feb

Open Thread: Podemos Beber SÃ Liberalmente!

Bill Russell and I had an intimate encounter at Asheville Brewing Company last night, but you’ll have to come out to Drinking Liberally tonight to find out what transpired. DL will be watching the Obama/Clinton debate at 8pm and quaffing from 7 ’til the quaffin’s done.

I’m going to be a little late getting there, so can someone organize the teevee/sound situation? Arratik’s getting in from L.A., but he’s not sure if he’ll get there in time. Cheers!

What’s happening? Who knows what? My day job is really eating into my information addiction, and I need your help.

Here’s an amazing video clip of the thousand students who marched seven miles to vote for Obama in Texas:

Categories : Drinking Liberally, Open Thread, Presidential Race

22 Comments

Drama Queen
February 21st, 2008 at 12:15 am

Here’s my question for the day: Is McCain going down and, if so, will Romney or Huckabee win the day. Or is Drudge right and it’s a hit piece by the times?

And here’s my trip report.

Our only accomplishment was successfully exiting the Old Line State or the Free State (Mason-Dixon or Religion, take your pick): Maryland. Don’t laugh. It wasn’t that easy.

Tuesday night we stayed in a motel not far from home. We checked in with our four cats and then returned to our rental house to clean up and attach our bikes to the car, which is not so easy with a cheap second-hand bike rack. Note to self: buy a better bike rack.

Wednesday we were about 30 miles past Hagerstown when the right rear tire went flat. And it had started snowing. We decided on a tow (back to Hagerstown) rather than change to the spare and driving back ourselves because of potential cat trauma from the unpacking and packing (and then reunpacking and packing to put the spare back). Three hours later we were on our way. Woo hooo!

So, we didn’t get too far our first day but we feel good about our four new tires. And southern PA and Western MD are gorgeous in the snow. Note to self: don’t bury camera in packed bag under where the cats are sleeping.

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bobaloo
February 21st, 2008 at 9:29 am

DQ,
Of course it’s a hit piece. There’s no better term for it and the NYT is gunning for him. The real question is whether or not it’ll stick. It sounds dubious, but we’ll see. Campaign Carl’s on it!

The only way Romney or Huck would get the nom now is if McCain drops out. Anyone see that happening, barring a major scandal (that can be proven, of course)?

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Gordon Smith
February 21st, 2008 at 9:38 am

The Times endorsed McCain.

Drudge ran this piece on his front page in DECEMBER.

These facts don’t add up to The NYT hates McCain and Drudge is a paragon of virtue.

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Gordon Smith
February 21st, 2008 at 9:41 am

For those of you who want to learn more:

11th Congressional District Republican Debate
Thursday February 21, 2008
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Location: YMI Cultural Center, 39 S. Market St.

Notes:
John Armor
Spence Campbell
Carl Mumpower

I can’t make it. I’ve got racquetball then the Obama/Clinton debate at Drinking Liberally. Someone get us the skinny.

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bobaloo
February 21st, 2008 at 10:46 am

Yeah, so? Who would you think they’d endorse for the GOP? Romney? They endorsed the most centrist candidate out of the Reps.

I’m not going off on a “the MSM is liberal!!1!1″ tirade, but if they had run a story like this on a Dem, we’d be up crapping all over it. Kind of like this hit piece:
http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/124171,CST-NWS-obama05.article

That said, just because it’s a hit piece doesn’t make it not true. Like I said, we’ll see.

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bobaloo
February 21st, 2008 at 10:48 am

One more thing: Don’t ever, ever allude to me saying Drudge is a paragon of virtue.

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barry
February 21st, 2008 at 1:11 pm

If I were a “Rovian” type, & knew that conservatives staying home in November = McCain is toast, what to do? Get the NYT and Washington Post to attack him.

Everyone expects both candidates to get slimed, so why not innoculate him early with something that is BOTH unsubstantiated and old, AND comes from the “liberal” NYT? This gives the yakking heads on the right something else to talk about other than how much they distrust McCain.

All the Bubbas out there will hear about him for the next month is: “Hey if the NYT is going after him, maybe he’s not so bad.”

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eddie
February 21st, 2008 at 1:40 pm

If you’re in a competitive race what better way to ensure victory then to handpick your opponent. By choosing an opponent that isn’t embraced by the opposing side, you gain an immediate advantage.

Hypothesis: The NYT’s endorsed McCain back in December because they had this story in their back pocket and also knew that he would have trouble moblizing the GOP to vote for him in force? Several of the news programs last night mentioned that the NYT began asking questions on this subject back in Oct 2007.

Sounds like a build’em up and tear’em down strategy to me.

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Arratik
February 21st, 2008 at 3:31 pm

I’m in Charlotte!!!! I never thought I’d say this about being in Charlotte, but

w00t!!!!!

Good point there, Barry. I was just talking about this with my wife – who benefits from this? Your analysis makes perfect sense, but probably because I’m a cynical bastard.

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Gordon Smith
February 21st, 2008 at 3:53 pm

via dKos:

Turnout on the first day of early voting was up all across Texas, according to initial numbers from the Secretary of Stateâ€™s office. But Houston and Dallas were off the charts â€” the numbers show a 10-fold increase over 2004. In Harris County four years ago, only 728 people showed up for the Democratic primary on the first day of early voting. Yesterday it was 9,243.

In Dallas, the first-day turnout jumped from 913 in 2004 to 8,615 yesterday. That would seem good news for Obama. Other urban counties such as Travis (Austin) and Bexar (San Antonio) showed six-fold increases. In El Paso, it tripled.

Turnout was up too in the Rio Grande Valley, an expected Clinton stronghold, but the increase wasnâ€™t as dramatic. In Hidalgo County, the number of voters rose from 3,858 (2004) to 5,793 (2008).

David Plouffe, the Obama campaign manager, told Texas reporters this afternoon on a conference call that the campaign has emphasized ushering supporters to the polls early and was very encouraged by the early voting numbers so far. Early voting ends Feb. 29.

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Kai Schwandes
February 21st, 2008 at 5:52 pm

Hello all you Obama lovers.
Just came across this video, thought you might like it.

Barack Obama: Un Candidato Luchando Por Nuestra Nacion

http://gawker.com/359398/barack-obama-un-candidato-luchando-por-nuestra-nacion

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Gordon Smith
February 21st, 2008 at 6:14 pm

Thanks to Councilman Newman for this info:

LCV Releases 2007 National Environmental Scorecard
Conservation Council of North Carolina Applauds Shulerâ€™s 75 percent Score After Replacing â€˜Dirty Dozenâ€™ Member Taylor

WASHINGTON, D.C. â€“ The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) and Conservation Council of NC applaud lawmakers for their work during the first session of the 110th Congress to move America toward a clean energy future and to prepare for the challenge of addressing global warming.

LCV President Gene Karpinski said LCVâ€™s 2007 National Environmental Scorecard, released today and available at http://www.lcv.org/scorecard, shows that last year â€œmarked a turning point for the environment, and proved that electing pro-environment candidates is a critical first step toward enacting sound environmental policies that will protect our planet and our future.â€

â€œThe progress of 2007, including passage of the first increase in fuel efficiency standards for automobiles in a generation, was largely due to new leadership in both the House and the Senate, and to the many new members who came to Congress determined to bring about a clean energy future,â€ Karpinski said.

â€œSeventy-one out of the 89 candidates LCV endorsed in 2006 (80 percent) won,â€ he said. â€œElections have consequences, and LCVâ€™s success in helping elect pro-environment candidates already has reaped environmental policy results. We are delighted that not only do the LCV-endorsed new members have an impressive average score of 87 percent, but many of them also championed key legislative priorities.â€

North Carolina Members

â€œHere in North Carolina, LCV is pleased that Rep. Heath Shuler (D-11th), who scored 75 percent, has replaced â€˜Dirty Dozenâ€™ member Charles Taylor (R-11th), who had a paltry lifetime score of 5 percent,â€ Karpinski said.

â€œLCV also applauds Reps. David Price (D-4th) and Melvin Watt (D-12th) for scoring an impressive 95 percent, and Rep. Brad Miller (D-13th) for scoring 90 percent,â€ he said. â€œWe are disappointed that Patrick McHenry (R-10) scored an abysmal 0 percent, and that Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) each scored a poor 7 percent.â€

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Gordon Smith
February 21st, 2008 at 6:28 pm

Teh Awesome:

Barack Obama has won the Democrats Abroad Global Primary, according to the International Chair for the Democrats Abroad, Christine Marques.

Marques tells CNN the results of the week-long vote were:

Barack Obama â€“ 65 percent, Hillary Clinton â€“ 32 percent, with the rest of the candidates pulling in less than 1 percent of the vote each.

Democrats Abroad will send 22 delegates to the Democratic Convention, with half a vote each, carrying a total of 11 votes.

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shadmarsh
February 21st, 2008 at 6:42 pm

Was Bob Cousy there too?

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Jim
February 22nd, 2008 at 12:00 am

Almost always, when there are videos posted on this site, they are no longer available when I click on them. Could you post a link, or keywords with which to search for them?

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Gordon Smith
February 22nd, 2008 at 12:55 am

The video’s still working fine for me, Jim. I’m not sure what the problem is., but here’s the link to the YouTube page:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvDAiWWuvRg&eurl=http://www.scrutinyhooligans.us/

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Gordon Smith
February 22nd, 2008 at 1:12 am

And here’s a fun thing:

“U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville, is pleased that the National Football League will allow religious organizations to show the Super Bowl as a fellowship event.

Advertisement

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the NFL today announced their decision. The league no longer will object to churches and other religious organizations showing the Super Bowl, as long as no admission fee is charged and the showing occurs at the religious organization’s normal location, according to a press release from Shuler’s office.

Brian McCarthy, vice president of communications for the NFL, said the league “never objected to churches or other non-profit groups showing the game.

“It was admission fees and the size of the screens that had been the issue,” McCarthy said via email. “When asked about the policy, we would explain that churches should not charge an admission fee since the game is on television for free. We would also explain how the Copyright Act stated that the screen used to show the game must be no larger than a size commonly found in private homes.”

The bottom line, though, as McCarthy put it, is this: We will no longer object to organizations showing the Super Bowl regardless of screen size.”

Shuler and Rep. Joe Pitts, R-PA, worked together on the issue and had planned to pursue legislation. Shuler had sent a letter to Goodell earlier this month about the issue, then began working with Pitts on a law to exempt churches from copyright laws.

The NFL will implement this policy for the 2009 Super Bowl. Shuler and Pittsâ€™ legislation will no longer be necessary.

â€œTodayâ€™s announcement by the NFL is a victory for people of faith, and sports fans across America,â€ Shuler said. â€œ

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writ of summons
February 22nd, 2008 at 1:25 am

I think Obama won the CNN debate tonight. A lot of pundits might say that Hillary! won, but I’m convinced that Obama has the edge in this race now and all he has to do is hold his own in order to win. And he definitely did that at the very least.

Obama is closing the poll gap in Ohio and Texas. I don’t know if tonight will move the needle. But I have this creeping sense we’re watching history in the making. Not just that we’re seeing Obama emerge the way that he is, but that he is wresting control of the Democratic party from the Clinton machine.

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shadmarsh
February 22nd, 2008 at 9:11 am

Todayâ€™s announcement by the NFL is a victory for people of faith, and sports fans across America,â€ Shuler said.

Is it too late to take my vote for this douche back?

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shadmarsh
February 22nd, 2008 at 9:13 am

something went wrong up there…I was talking about Heath.

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barry
February 22nd, 2008 at 1:52 pm

Listening to Rush & Hannity yesterday/last night, I heard any number of callers say things like “well, I didn’t care much for McCain, but if the NYT is against him, maybe I should take another look.”

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Arratik
February 22nd, 2008 at 2:50 pm

fyi – the “cite” attribute is no longer allowed with the “blockquote” tag. At least not here.

http://www.w3schools.com/tags/tag_blockquote.asp

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