111 Comments

• 1. Obama Running Mate Watch�&hellip  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 6:58 pm

  [...] Continue Reading [...]

• 2. Rich  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 7:09 pm

  Big rookie mistake by not even vetting Clinton. Of course this could just be a smokescreen to surprise everyone with a Clinton pick. IF not, prepare for some raucous complaining at the convention

• 3. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 7:12 pm

  Evan Bayh is one of my Senators, and I’m not ashamed to say I’ve voted for him once for Governor and twice for Senate. He’s one of the saner heads in the Democrat Party, and Obama, if he really does end up being the Dem nominee, could do a whole lot worse. I really figured, not all that long ago, that Obama was a lock to win the White House. I didn’t figure the buyer’s remorse would set in until about half way through his first year. It appears I may have been wrong.

• 4. jayhay  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 7:50 pm

  Speaking of buyer’s remorse, Susan Eisenhower pulls out of GOP: “It was not easy taking this step, since politics, like religion, is something learned on the knee of one’s parents and grandparents. And like anything else inherited, it is imbedded in one’s own identity. This makes leaving even harder.

  But there will be some joy for me in my new status since I will be able to speak for myself, and not as a member of a party that has, sadly, lost its way.”

  I’m sure if Ike could see what’s happened to the GOP he’d never stop throwing up…

  http://www.boomantribune.com/?op=displaystory;sid=2008/8/21/194141/534

• 5. gotbrains?  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 7:50 pm

  That rumor about the Bayh stickers was already debunked. But I agree with Retired Spook - Bayh would be a decent pick. And so would Biden, Hillary, or several others.

• 6. Mark Noonan  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 7:50 pm

  Bayh is Obama’s best pick - actually gives Obama an outside chance at Indiana’s electoral votes.

• 7. neocon  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:04 pm

  jayhay,

  So one person leaving the party is an indicator that the party has lost it’s way?

  Let me know of your thoughts about Joe Lieberman.

  gotbrains,

  If Hillary were asked, she’d decline. She see’s the train wreck ahead and is preparing for 2012. She probably could’ve won this year, but the liberals, being the smartest people on the planet, nominated the most unelectable candidate ever.

  I’ve always liked Bayh. Biden would be a disaster.

• 8. gotbrains?  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:14 pm

  Jayhay -

  yep - when President Eisenhower coined the term “military-industrial complex”, and spoke about its dangers to American ideals and prosperity, he could not have envisioned that his own Republican party would become synonymous with this corporate war machine.

  And of course Ike was proud to invest in America’s public infrastructure - the interstate highway system bears his name to this day, put countless Americans to work, and provided the transportation network that was a boon to private industry and wealth generation. Today’s Republicans are radicals bent on destroying the public infrastructure, and turning over the public treasury for pillage by private corporate interests. Ike would no more recognize today’s radical movement conservatives as Republican than Abraham Lincoln would recognize it’s wedge-issue Southern strategy.

• 9. jayhay  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:19 pm

  Neo “I guarantee it!” con - “So one person leaving the party is an indicator that the party has lost it’s way?” Yes, perfect word, it’s an indicator. Especially when she’s from a family that represents conservatism, and she’s leaving because of what the GOP has morphed into. And Lieberman is leaving because because he’s DRAWN TO that new fundamentalist GOP.

  (Can’t wait for the GOP convention when they’ll finally let people know that McCain was a POW! That will be thrilling! A big ol’ churchy GOP POW filmstrip with a full-tilt abortion will be illegal in all cases platform to fullfill the wishes of the 30% who agree with you! And McCain was a POW!)

• 10. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:29 pm

  Bayh is Obama’s best pick - actually gives Obama an outside chance at Indiana’s electoral votes.

  Acutally, Mark, Bayh would give whoever his running mate is an excellent shot at Indiana EV’s. Bayh won reelection to the Senate in 2004 by nearly 600,000 votes (61+%) in a very Red state. He was a very popular governor, leaving the state with a surplus after 2 terms (which his LT Gov. and successor promptly squandered, almost bankrupting the state) Bayh’s biggest problem is that he was a big Hillary cheerleader until Obama because the presumptive nominee. I still wouldn’t count out a Hillary-Bayh ticket. What’s ironic is that I think a Hillary - Obama ticket would have produced a 47 or 48 state Dem landslide. Oh, well, no one ever said that Democrats were smart.

  Biden would be a disaster

  For the Dems, yeah. Obama-Biden would be a dream ticket for the GOP.

• 11. neocon  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:32 pm

  jayhay and gotbrains?

  Both of your perceptions of modern day conservatives, and conservatism is hysterical. Fed and regurgitated propaganda; “big ol’ churchy”, “pillaging corporations raping the treasury and illegalizing abortion”. Your recitation of them is predictable, yet pathetic.

  Obama is an absolute political lightweight whose numbers have plummeted in a very short time because people are finally getting to know him and realize that he is not at all ready. I don’t even think it will be close.

  So keeping slashing and burning boys cause come November, the MoveOn.org wing of the Democratic party is going to implode. Remember, they bought and paid for your party.

  have a great night
  neocon

• 12. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:35 pm

  because the presumptive nominee

  oops — “became” the presumption nominee.

• 13. jayhay  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:53 pm

  Neo - My “perception” of conservatives is that they are being driven from the GOP by the demands of the fundamentalists. My “perception” is that a party that wants more government intrusion into people’s personal matters and has run up record debt and that get a tingle up their leg over every possibility of foreign entanglement is not “conservative”. The GOP has been taken over by authoritarian fundamentalists. If you think that’s hysterical well, whatever gets you off. But you reap what you sow.

  And Obama is a political lightweight… riiiight… and you guys think arugula will get you the White House. Yeah that’s some heady stuff there…

  And McCain was a POW. And actuarial tables show your candidate has a 15% chance of croaking during the next four years.

• 14. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:55 pm

  Obama is an absolute political lightweight whose numbers have plummeted in a very short time because people are finally getting to know him and realize that he is not at all ready.

  neocon,

  Peggy Noonan (no, not Mark’s mom) says essentially that in a great piece in the WSJ today.

  Why is it a real race now, with John McCain rising in the polls and Barack Obama falling? There are many answers, but here I think is an essential one: The American people have begun paying attention.

  It’s hard for our political class to remember that Mr. Obama has been famous in America only since the winter of ‘08. America met him barely six months ago! The political class first interviewed him, or read the interview, in 2003 or ‘04, when he was a rising star. They know him. Everyone else is still absorbing.

  This is what they see:

  An attractive, intelligent man, interesting, but—he’s hard to categorize. Is he Gen. Obama? No, no military background. Brilliant Businessman Obama? No, he never worked in business. Famous Name Obama? No, it’s a new name, an unusual one. Longtime Southern Governor Obama? No. He’s a community organizer (what’s that?), then a lawyer (boo), then a state legislator (so what, so’s my cousin), then U.S. senator (less than four years!).

  There is no pre-existing category for him.

  Add to that the wear and tear of Jeremiah Wright, secret Muslim rumors, media darling and, this week, abortion.

  It took a toll, which led to a readjustment. His uniqueness, once his great power, is now his great problem.

• 15. CanadianObserver  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 8:56 pm

  11. neocon | August 22nd, 2008 at 8:32 pm
  ———————————-
  Be honest now, neocon, do you think if Eisenhower were alive now he would even recognize the Republican Party? In his day, did the religious right wing element wield the power they do today?

• 16. neocon  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:12 pm

  jayhay and CO,

  I will agree with you that Republicans are to blame for the current bloated government and reckless spending, however it’s McCain, and not Obama that has the best plan to turn that around; put an absolute stop to earmarks, mandate balanced budgets and keep investment taxes low.

  The right wing has very little influence, but it’s a good scare tactic. Strong evangelical GOPers are estimated to be 8-10%. And speaking of fringe elements controlling a party, do some research on MoveOn.org.

  Spook,

  I had almost forgotten about Peggy, I use to read her column a lot. I always liked her, thanks.

• 17. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:12 pm

  Be honest now, neocon CO, do you think if Eisenhower Hubert Humphrey were alive now he would even recognize the Republican Democrat Party? In his day, did the religious right kook left-wing element wield the power they do today

• 18. neocon  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:16 pm

  Spook,

  I admire your mastery of html. For an old guy here, I haven’t quite grasped how to turn the damn italics/bold off, at the end of the quote.

  Any tips.

  btw, I thought about the same post only I was inserting JFK

• 19. js  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm

  now they are playing americans for fools…taking every bit of time they can milk for a publicity stunt over a simple thing…must be about all they can get because they surely cant do it for issues that really matter…like the energy crisis and the massive bank/mortgage frauds thier constituents are victims of…its better for them to use any ploy they can because they really need it….

  the DNC…Da Nut Case

• 20. DM  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:57 pm

  Neo - quote

• 21. DM  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 9:58 pm

  Let’s try that again and see if this works quote w/o the spaces

• 22. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:02 pm

  Yeah, neo, I debated between JFK and Humphrey. Humphrey was more of a common man than JFK, though, something that is almost completely missing from the modern Democrat Party. Today’s Democrat Party is largely made up of a conglomeration of fringe elements, as evidenced by the Dems who post here.

  HTML is pretty simple whether it’s BOLD, ITALICS, STRIKEOVER, or an embedded link. You begin each one with the “less than symbol” (). Following the word or words you want to bold, italicize, strike over, etc., you anchor it with . Try that, and then we’ll move on to embedded links.

• 23. DM  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:08 pm

  Strike 2…

  Neo, simple use the same symbols again at the end of the quote but add a forward slash before the letter I (italics) or B (bold) or whatever your HTML is for.

• 24. William Teach  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:13 pm

  It’s funny, because whoever Barry chooses, they will be more competent to be president then Barry.

• 25. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:14 pm

  Well, that was interesting. None of the symbols I typed showed up in my post. I’ll see if I can describe it in words.

  “less than symbol” followed by b (bold), i (italics), strike (strikeover), followed by “greater than symbol, followed by word or words you want to bold, italicize, strike over, etc. The anchor is the same as the beginning except for the addition of a forward slash between the “”less than symbol and the b, i, etc., then finished with “greater than symbol”.

  I used to have a link to a great, easy-to understand HTML tutorial, but I just checked my bookmarks, and it’s not there anymore. Google “HTML tutorial” if you can’t figure it out from my chicken scratching above.

• 26. Kahn  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:32 pm

  If only Bozo hadn’t died.

• 27. Jeremiah  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:52 pm

  If only Bozo hadn’t died.

  What?…. Who…?

• 28. neocon  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:53 pm

  Thanks guys

  Kahn, that was brilliant. LMAO

• 29. snark  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 10:57 pm

  “If only Bozo hadn’t died.”

  Bush died?

• 30. Retired Spook  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 11:16 pm

  Kahn,

  All may not be lost. I believe Biden is Bozo’s half brother. The press has set up a vigil outside Biden’s house. Gotta be a red herring, though. I mean those whiz kids on the Obama campaign staff are too smart to pick a blowhard, plagiarizer like Biden — aren’t they? The two of them could never appear together because Obama would never get a word in edgewise.

• 31. SEW  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 11:26 pm

  No, George Hussein is Bozo’s half brother. He is very green and lives on $1 a month.

• 32. mn libertarian  |  August 22nd, 2008 at 11:57 pm

  This is getting pretty ridiculous. The VP choice is Hillary. They are throwing up red herrings from bumperstickers to hinting at Biden.

  While Hillary remains mysteriously quiet. Watch for it to be Hillary and how the Democrat party is now ‘united’.

• 33. Kahn  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:11 am

  http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=463858485

  Biden on Obama 1

• 34. Kahn  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:15 am

  Biden said “The White House is no place to learn on the job.”

  I wonder what changed his mind?

• 35. Obama/Biden, 08?&hellip  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:40 am

  [...] Continue Reading [...]

• 36. autocarsinsurance »&hellip  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:48 am

  [...] Original post by Matt Margolis [...]

• 37. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:11 am

  Kahn,

  Its just too good to be true - and I mean, of course, for the GOP…

• 38. Magnum Serpentine  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:29 am

  No Mark, its not bogus its a Nightmare

  I am now hoping for a floor fight and I hope Hillary Clinton wins. What in the world is Obama thinking not choosing Clinton as VP?

• 39. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:33 am

  Magnum,

  I just linked to a news story about a recent poll showing McCain leading Obama 45% to 36% among Catholics - could be that Obama is just trying to save Pennsylvania (Democrat, but heavily Catholic and pro-life) and Michigan (also Democrat, but heavily Catholic and pro-life)…

• 40. Magnum Serpentine  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:43 am

  Mark

  I don’t think Obama’s efforts will work. I believe McCain may get 400 electoral votes and maybe even 500.

  As I said I am hoping for a floor fight. Might not happen but I can still hope.

  Obama might win but this action tonight has me blood pressure up which is not a good thing.

• 41. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:58 am

  Magnum,

  Well, I won’t go and say that - the VP pick is important, but not that important and its still an anti-GOP year. But other than a means of appealing to Catholics in the northeast, I can’t think of a valid reason for Obama to pick Biden…though I also now wonder if Obama is falling into the same trap Dole walked himself into in 1996 - having a Catholic outreach which is all about the ethnic part of Catholicism with no emphasis on Catholic moral teaching? Dole thought he could say nice things about the Irish and that would swing Catholics behind him - Bush learned the lesson and addressed core Catholic issues; the faith based initiative and the “compassionate conservative” themes were tailor made to appeal to Catholics on their faith ideals. Obama goes into this handicapped by his rather extreme pro-abortion actions, balancing it offwith a Catholic liberal who has managed to keep in good standig with Church teaching on life issues (if only barely) might help…

• 42. Danish Artist  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:04 am

  After the abuse Obama heaped on Hillary, picking her is a sign of desperation. Hillary will not accept and I expect Hillary and her supporters at the convention will make an attempt to steal the show.

• 43. Eric T  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:14 am

  I think Obama picking Biden gives his campaign a little more credibility and experience. I think it is a much better choice than Hillary.

• 44. phnx  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:19 am

  It is now confirmed Biden is the pick.

  Biden as many of you might remember has been called the stressless scholar for his history of plagiarism. This probably isn’t a big deal for all of our young leftist trolls as plagiarism is apparently rampant in college today.

  However, this did become an issue when he ran against Dukakis for the Presidential nomination of the donkey party. The Dukakis campaign created a video attacking Joe on his word for word plagiarism of British Labor Party leader Neal Kinnock. The attacks eventually led to his withdrawl.

  hmmmmm, I wonder if there are any copies of that still around???

  You can read all about Joe here:

  http://www.famousplagiarists.com/politics.htm

• 45. js  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:36 am

  and…..Biden is the Sucker!! Biden has a bad history of plagarism too….he comes booted as a lier from the git go…christian or not…he is a cemented block in the DNC’s wall of good ole boys….

  so much for “CHANGE”, eh Barry? just another Starched suit from the DNC’s long list of old school politicians…ya cant change a bad tree….either you have a good tree that gives good fruit….or a bad tree that gives bad fruit….and no matter how hard ya try…you cant get good fruit from the bad tree!!

• 46. js  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:52 am

  from clarence thomas;

  Senator Biden was the first questioner. Instead of the softball questions he’d promised to ask, he threw a beanball straight at my head, quoting from a speech that I’d given four years earlier at the Pacific Legal Foundation and challenging me to defend what I’d said: “ ‘I find attractive the arguments of scholars such as Stephen Macedo, who defend an activist Supreme Court that would . . . strike down laws restricting property right.’ ” That caught me off guard, and I had no recollection of making so atypical a statement, which shook me up even more. “Now, it would seem to me what you were talking about,” Senator Biden went on to say, “is you find attractive the fact that they are activists and they would like to strike down existing laws that impact on restricting the use of property rights, because you know, that is what they write about.”

  Since I didn’t remember making the statement in the first place, I didn’t know how to respond to it. All I could say in reply was that “it has been quite some time since I have read Professor Macedo. . . . But I don’t believe that in my writings I have indicated that we should have an activist Supreme Court or that we should have any form of activism on the Supreme Court.” It was, I knew, a weak answer. Fortunately, though, the young lawyers who had helped prepare me for the hearings had loaded all of my speeches into a computer, and at the first break in the proceedings they looked this one up. The senator, they found, had wrenched my words out of context. I looked at the text of my speech and saw that the passage he’d read out loud had been immediately followed by two other sentences: “But the libertarian argument overlooks the place of the Supreme Court in a scheme of separation of powers. One does not strengthen self-government and the rule of law by having the non-democratic branch of the government make policy.” The point I’d been making was the opposite of the one that Senator Biden claimed I had made.

  Throughout my life I’ve often found truth embedded in the lyrics of my favorite records. At Yale, for example, I’d listened often to “Smiling Faces Sometimes,” a song by the Undisputed Truth that warns of the dangers of trusting the hypocrites who “pretend to be your friend” while secretly planning to do you wrong. Now I knew I’d met one of them: Senator Biden’s smooth, insincere promises that he would treat me fairly were nothing but talk. Instead of relaxing, I’d have to keep my guard up

• 47. Fantasyteam  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 7:58 am

  The Biden pick just took Pa and NJ off the Repug radar and just about sealed the deal for VA.

  As for Hillary Clinton, her next big splash will be as the next nominee to the Supreme Court. Would give anything to see Noonan’s and all the rest of you far right wingnut faces when that announcement is made.

• 48. hermie  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 8:36 am

  What a bumble by the Obamamessiah!

  Biden…one of the most partisan Dems, one of the ‘politics as usual’ Dema, one of the ‘Washington Insiders’ which Obama has claimed to NOT be.

  Biden, who has run for the Presidency how many times, and gotten less votes than Pat Paulsen, is now somebody who can help Obama?

  Biden is one of the east cosat elitists that turn off the South and the Midwest. I assume that Obama’s strategy is to write off most of the country and try to run only in ’safe’ Dem states like NY.

  Also, this does NOT automatically put PA, NJ and VA into the Dem column. In fact, Obama’s choice has now further damaged his claims of superior ‘judgement’.

  ‘Judgement to Lead’ reads one of his slogans. It turns out that means the Obamamessiah has become a reverse alchemist.

• 49. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 8:50 am

  I love how you toadies criticize Biden for spending so much time in the Senate… while you tout John McCain, who has been in the Senate almost as long.

  John McCain: bottom of Annapolis class, became a POW, dumped his wife for rich mistress, joined congress in 1982.

• 50. Retired Spook  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 9:13 am

  The Biden pick just took Pa and NJ off the Repug radar and just about sealed the deal for VA.

  Well, he locked up Delaware’s 3 EV’s, that’s for sure.

  js, a Liberal Democrat taking someone’s word out of context to score political points? I’m shocked; shocked, I tell you!

  They’re going to have to shove a sock in Biden’s mouth every time he and Barry appear together. This has to be the best possible pick for Republicans. Better dust off all the videos showing Biden saying derogatory things about Obama (and good things about McCain). I see a whole new pool of ad material.

• 51. Greg-O  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 9:35 am

  Remember this gem from Biden talking about 0bama?

  “I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” Biden said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

  gotbrains, the criticism isn’t Biden’s experience, but how he doesn’t fit 0bama’s “change” mantra. He’s about “change” but he picks one of the few politicians who have been in D.C. longer than McCain.

  “You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I’m not joking,” Biden said.

  Yeah, that’s “change” alright.

• 52. SEW  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 9:38 am

  The board trools are speechless, moonbat talking points are slow to come out. Official moonbat talking points must be speechless as well.
  DREAM TEAM OBAMA/BIDEN 08

  YEE HAW

• 53. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 9:40 am

  I think Biden is a clean and articulate VP choice.

• 54. Retired Spook  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 11:35 am

  Remember this from the Senate hearings on the Sam Alito SC nomination:

  There was not a break that didn’t begin without a Democrat Senator expounding upon the evils of Alito’s answers. (Not that
  the Senators gave him much of a chance to answer. In one thirty -minute session, Biden spoke for 24 minutes and Alito gave a
  six minute answer. He might as well have said, “Enough about me, now, what did YOU think of my last question?” Biden also may hold a some kind of record for referring to himself once
  every 12 seconds, five times each minute, for a grand total of 360 times in 70 minutes of questioning. (emphasis added)

  Yup, this is gonna be fun. We may need a commercial pop corn popper before this is over.

• 55. SEW  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 11:38 am

  DailyKos archives on motormouth.

  http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/1/31/11112/2465

• 56. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 11:51 am

  I just can’t wait for Biden to whip out a can of whoopass on whichever poor slob McCain chooses as veep.

• 57. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 11:59 am

  neocon,

  I’m still flabbergasted by the choice and still trying to figure out a really good reason for the pick…perhaps Kaine and Bayh gave it a pass?

• 58. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 12:04 pm

  51. Greg-O

  “gotbrains, the criticism isn’t Biden’s experience, but how he doesn’t fit 0bama’s “change” mantra.”

  And if Obama had picked a DC outsider, or a governor of a middling state, you all would be screeching about how his veep choice wasn’t experienced enough. This is an excellent, balanced ticket.

  Truth is, there are few out there with Joe Biden’s immense foreign policy knowledge and experience. And Mac has been harping on and on about how it is all about experience. Lets see Mac’s veep pick top Biden in that department.

  Silver haired Biden is also well known and well liked by seniors, the sort of folks who may not have been entirely comfortable with Obama, but who were looking for an alternative to McNasty. Biden is from a working class family, and is the least wealthy senator, which re-inforces the fact that the Obama-Biden team is more in touch with regular folks than the multi-mansioned hubby of Ms Money-Bags Real Estate Queen.

  Biden is also just a funny, likable guy who like Barack is very comfortable in his own skin and around regular folks. Definitely passes the “who would you like to have a beer with” test. He has a quick, biting wit, and is a formidable debater - unlike Edwards and Lieberman who were very soft in their debates.

  This is a very solid pick - unfortunately for you wingnuts.

• 59. SEW  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 12:33 pm

  I’m with you got brains. Solid pick. He is on record as stating Obama is not ready to be POTUS, McCain is. Very “balanced” ticket.

  Change you can believe in. Obama/Biden08.

• 60. Retired Spook  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 12:47 pm

  perhaps Kaine and Bayh gave it a pass?

  That was my first thought too, Mark — that everyone else said “no thanks”. Biden may have actually said “no” too, but it was probably buried in a 45 minute dissertation.

• 61. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:13 pm

  “…perhaps Kaine and Bayh gave it a pass?”

  uh, no, they were both lobbying hard for the position. Joe Biden was just the better choice. The fact that Mark is “flabbergasted” pretty much confirms that. ;)

  Can’t wait to see which loser McCain will pick. My money is on Willard - the Mormon one time abortion-rights flip-flopping suck-up from the bluest state in the union who probably can’t remember how many houses he has either!

  You trogs are so going down in November.

• 62. js  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:28 pm

  oh i get it

  its all a charade

  they get together in springfield, ILL in an attempt to garner the image of Lincoln, one of the founding fathers of the GOP….

  except they are not fighting for freedom…they are fighting for the right to enslave americans through higher taxation and socialism

  they are not there by thier own righteousness, but by thier deceptions and politic’s

  they are, essentially, lying to us when they show up in springfield Ill, like they do everywhere else….

  Biden for VP; he will fight for unfair credit card companies right to screw americans!!

• 63. js  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:44 pm

  Joe Biden’s Bankrupt Vote
  When researching the Democrat Senators that voted for the Bankruptcy bill, I found that the Senators from Delaware were the top recipients of campaign cash from the Finance/Credit Card industries. And I found that neither of them had any press releases explaining their votes for this bill.

  Today, Senator Joe Biden☼ finally gave a reason for the vote he took as he responded to the charge that Jonathan Chait had made in his column, When Democrats Join the Dark Side. (via Dkos’ dday) Biden’s letter to the editor castigates Chait for not realizing that this was a well-balanced bipartisan bill.

  In his zeal to attack the bankruptcy reform bill, Jonathan Chait’s March 4 commentary, “When Democrats Join the Dark Side,” mischaracterizes the legislation. In 2001, a similar bill passed the Senate 82 to 16. The provisions affecting consumer bankruptcy were identical to those Chait criticizes.

  At the outset, I refused to support bankruptcy reform until fundamental changes were made. I fought to establish a “safe harbor” for those below their state’s median income. I also insisted on a provision requiring lenders to post a clear warning about the dangers of making minimum monthly payments, one of the worst debt traps for consumers.

  This bill establishes unprecedented protections for child support and alimony, making bankruptcy part of the enforcement system for women and children, who now will be at the head of the line, in front of every other creditor. Is this bill perfect? No. But over several congresses it has earned the kind of bipartisan consensus only balanced legislation can achieve.

  Oh, gee, isn’t that nice? The bill is a peach of a bill with all kinds of protections for consumers who find themselves in trouble. All those little gems stuffed in this bill like the fact that credit card companies can charge rates that would make the mafia loan sharks look like pikers. Some Democrats found that little credit card company giveaway a bit hard to swallow.

  According to David Broder writing about this terrible bill, it was the Delaware Senators who balked at any amendments that would have stopped some of the worst abuse companies use when filing bankruptcy.

  Even more instructive was what happened when a staunch conservative, Republican Sen. John Cornyn☼ of Texas, tried to put a little balance into the bill.

  As attorney general of Texas, Cornyn said the notorious Enron bankruptcy case “opened my eyes to a very real abuse in the current bankruptcy system,” the loophole that allows corporations to go “judge-shopping” for jurisdictions with permissive standards. Enron, which had 7,500 employees in Houston, filed for bankruptcy in New York, where it had 57 workers, because New York, along with Delaware, is known as being lenient on big business.

  Congress recently passed a law restricting plaintiffs in class-action suits from judge-shopping in the state courts, and Cornyn argued that it should also require corporate bankruptcy cases to be filed in their principal place of business. Citing cases of Polaroid, K-Mart, WorldCom and Enron, he said the judge-shopping loophole “serves to unfairly enable corporate debtors to evade their financial commitments, (and) it badly disables consumers, creditors, workers, pensioners, shareholders and small businesses from pursuing and receiving reasonable compensation from bankruptcy proceedings.”

  No one rose to dispute Cornyn. So what happened? He withdrew the amendment, without a vote, “out of respect to the managers of this bill who say that amendments to this bill would endanger its ultimate passage.”

  A Cornyn spokesman told me the bill sponsors said his amendment would cost them the support of the two Democratic senators from Delaware — that favorite haven for big business.

  So when Joe Biden comes around asking for your support for his presidential run in 2008, let him know that you’d be happy to support him as much as he’s supported us. In other words, go jump in a lake, Joe.

  http://www.pacificviews.org/weblog/archives/000966.html

• 64. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 1:49 pm

  Frankly, I think is a pretty solid pick. Biden brings a lot to the ticket. He’s a good campaigner, a solid family man, good Catholic, and has as good of foreign policy credentials as anyone in the country.

• 65. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:08 pm

  gotbrains,

  Of for crying out loud - you think that a 36-year Senator from a small, blue State is a better pick than Bayh who could help win Indiana or Kaine who could help win Virginia?

  Come on, dear Democrat, this is the worst pick Obama could make…

• 66. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:09 pm

  Casper,

  If he’s such a good campaigner then why did he get his clock cleaned in 1988 and 2008 as he ran for President? Perhaps he’s just someone who is conservative enough on some issues and liberal enough on others to coast to fair-to-middlin’ victories in a relatively moderate blue State?

• 67. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:11 pm

  Retired,

  Bayh was the Veep he should have taken…of course Richardson should have been the nominee…the political gods, it would seem, are opposed to a Democratic victory. Still might win, but if they do it won’t be the easy win everyone was expecting even as little as 6 weeks ago.

• 68. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:14 pm

  Mark,
  I think in the long run Biden will help more across the country. He will do a better job of picking up working class votes and the Catholic vote. He also has the experience to be a solid president if something happened to Obama, and with his Senate experience will help Obama pass the legislation he needs. All in all a solid pick.

• 69. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:19 pm

  Noonan -

  yeah, Bayh would have been OK too. As would Kaine, Webb, Hillary, and a number of others. Obama had a lot of great picks to choose from - an embarrassment of riches on the Dem side. But you only get to choose one pal, and Obama made a very solid pick.

  Contrast that to the Repub side, where there is a whole lot of nothing to choose from. Seriously, do you have even one candidate on the Repub side who is anywhere near as good as a half dozen great picks on the Dem side? Who? Willard? Noun, Verb, 9/11?

• 70. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:23 pm

  Mark,

  I am not sure if Bayh and Kaine gave it a pass, but I know Hillary would’ve, and I am sure this Biden pick doesn’t do anything to appease her base.

  Casper, I am sure if Obama picked Marion Berry as his VP, you’d be singing his praise to.

  Fairly predictable, but you need to understand that this is a very weak pick.

• 71. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:28 pm

  gotbrains?,

  Romney is so much better than anything the Dems can offer it’s not even close.

  Romney has the economic gravitas and the successful executive experience to dwarf anything O and Joe can throw at him.

  This election wont even be close. Say hello to President McCain

• 72. Retired Spook  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:29 pm

  Frankly, I think is a pretty solid pick. Biden brings a lot to the ticket

  Finally, Casper, you and I agree on something — albeit, not for the same reasons. The only VP selection I would have been more pleased with would have been Dennis Kucinnich. Now THAT would have been a TICKET!

• 73. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:31 pm

  Got,

  Um, yeah:

  Governor Sarah Palin made history on Dec. 4, 2006, when she took office. As the 11th governor of Alaska, she is the first woman to hold the office.

  Since taking office, her top priorities have been resource development, education and workforce development, public health and safety, and transportation and infrastructure development.

  Under her leadership, Alaska invested $5 billion in state savings, overhauled education funding, and implemented the Senior Benefits Program that provides support for low-income older Alaskans. She created Alaska’s Petroleum Systems Integrity Office to provide oversight and maintenance of oil and gas equipment, facilities and infrastructure, and the Climate Change Subcabinet to prepare a climate change strategy for Alaska.

  During her first legislative session, Governor Palin’s administration passed two major pieces of legislation – an overhaul of the state’s ethics laws and a competitive process to construct a gas pipeline.

  Governor Palin is chair of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, a multi-state government agency that promotes the conservation and efficient recovery of domestic oil and natural gas resources while protecting health, safety and the environment. She was recently named chair of the National Governors Association (NGA) Natural Resources Committee, which is charged with pursuing legislation to ensure state needs are considered as federal policy is formulated in the areas of agriculture, energy, environmental protection and natural resource management. Prior to being named to this position, she served as co-chair of this committee.

  Prior to her election as governor, Palin served two terms on the Wasilla City Council and two terms as the mayor/manager of Wasilla. During her tenure, she reduced property tax levels while increasing services and made Wasilla a business friendly environment, drawing in new industry.

  Bobby Jindal was sworn in as Governor of Louisiana on January 14, 2008.

  He was elected Governor of Louisiana on October 20, 2007, with 54 percent of the vote in the primary, winning 60 of 64 parishes. Shortly after taking office, Governor Jindal called a Special Session to address comprehensive ethics reform, the cornerstone of his election platform. After the conclusion of the successful session, the Center for Public Integrity deemed Louisiana’s new financial disclosure law as the strongest in the nation - giving Louisiana a score of 99 out of 100.

  Additionally, the Governor’s second Special Session eliminated burdensome taxes that deterred investment in Louisiana and limited the growth of existing Louisiana businesses.

  Governor Jindal has also put forth detailed plans for reforming our state’s health care, education, and transportation systems, as well as for encouraging workforce development and continuing recovery efforts in those areas devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

  Jindal was born in Baton Rouge on June 10, 1971. He graduated from Baton Rouge High School in 1988 and went on to attend Brown University where he graduated with honors in biology and public policy. Following his graduation from Brown he attended Oxford University in England as a Rhodes Scholar, having turned down admissions to medical and law schools at both Harvard and Yale.

  In 1994, Jindal went to work for McKinsey and Company as a consultant for Fortune 500 companies before entering public service. In 1996, he was appointed Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH). There were many issues that needed resolving during his tenure, not the least of which was the growing deficit in Louisiana’s Medicaid program. During Jindal’s tenure as DHH Secretary, he rescued Louisiana’s Medicaid program from bankruptcy, childhood immunizations increased, Louisiana ranked third best nationally in health care screenings for children, and new and expanded services for elderly and disabled persons were offered.

  In 1998, Jindal was appointed Executive Director of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. As Executive Director, he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Commission, whose work continue to be the driving force behind much of the ongoing debate on how to strengthen and improve Medicare.

  At the conclusion of the Commission’s work, Jindal was appointed President of the University of Louisiana System, the 16th largest higher education system in the country. While serving as President, Jindal worked to establish areas of excellence at each individual institution.

  President George W. Bush appointed Jindal to serve as Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2001. In that position, he served as the principal policy advisor to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. He later resigned from the position in 2003 to return to Louisiana and run for elected office for the first time. In that race, Jindal went from being a relatively unknown candidate for Governor, to receiving the most votes in the primary election and eventually 48 percent of the vote in runoff.

  In 2004 he was elected to the 109th United States Congress representing the First District of Louisiana. In Congress he was elected Freshman Class President and served on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, the House Committee on Homeland Security, and the House Committee on Resources. Bobby also served as Assistant Majority Whip. In his first term he passed a number of notable pieces of legislation and played an instrumental role in Louisiana’s recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. His noteworthy accomplishments include the passage of legislation to bring significant offshore energy revenues to Louisiana for the first time and legislation that keeps Federal Emergency Management Agency from taxing certain recovery grants as income.

  Jindal was re-elected to Congress in 2006 with 88 percent of the vote majority.

  Jindal and his wife Supriya have three young children.

  Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has been widely recognized for his leadership and accomplishments as a public servant and in private enterprise.

  Elected in 2002, Governor Romney presided over a dramatic reversal of state fortunes and a period of sustained economic expansion. Without raising taxes or increasing debt, Governor Romney balanced the budget every year of his administration, closing a $3 billion budget gap inherited when he took office. By eliminating waste, streamlining the government, and enacting comprehensive economic reforms to stimulate growth in Massachusetts, Romney got the economy moving again and transformed deficits into surpluses.

  At the beginning of Governor Romney’s term, Massachusetts was losing thousands of jobs every month. By the time he left office, the unemployment rate was lower, hundreds of companies had expanded or moved to Massachusetts, and in the last two years of his term, the state had added approximately 60,000 jobs.

  One of Governor Romney’s top priorities was reforming the education system so that young people could compete for better paying jobs in the global economy of the future. In 2004, Governor Romney established the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship Program to reward the top 25 percent of Massachusetts high school students with a four-year, tuition-free scholarship to any Massachusetts public university or college. He has also championed a package of education reforms, including merit pay, an emphasis on math and science instruction, important new intervention programs for failing schools and English immersion for foreign-speaking students.

  In 2006, Governor Romney proposed and signed into law a private, market-based reform that ensures every Massachusetts citizen will have health insurance, without a government takeover and without raising taxes.

  Governor Romney was elected to the Chairmanship of the Republican Governors Association by his fellow Governors for the 2006 election cycle, and raised a record $27 million for candidates running in State House contests around the country.

  Romney first gained national recognition for his role in turning around the 2002 Winter Olympics. With the 2002 Games mired in controversy and facing a financial crisis, Romney left behind a successful career as an entrepreneur to take over as President and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee.

  Governor Romney has said he felt compelled to assume the seemingly impossible task of rescuing the Games by both the urgings of his wife, Ann, and by the memory of his father, George Romney, who had been a successful businessman, three-term Governor of Michigan, and a tireless advocate of volunteerism in America.

  In his three years at the helm in Salt Lake, Romney erased a $379 million operating deficit, organized 23,000 volunteers, galvanized community spirit and oversaw an unprecedented security mobilization just months after the September 11th attacks, leading to one of the most successful Olympics in our country’s history.

  Prior to his Olympic service, Mitt Romney enjoyed a successful career helping businesses grow and improve their operations. From 1978 to 1984, Mr. Romney was a Vice President at Bain & Company, Inc., a leading management consulting firm. In 1984, Romney founded Bain Capital, one of the nation’s most successful venture capital and investment companies. Bain Capital helped launch hundreds of companies on a successful course, including Staples, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Domino’s Pizza, Sealy, Brookstone, and The Sports Authority. He was asked to return to Bain & Company as CEO several years later in order to lead a financial restructuring of the organization. Today, Bain & Company employs more than 2,000 people in 25 offices worldwide.

  Governor Romney has been deeply involved in community and civic affairs, serving extensively in his church and numerous charities including City Year, the Boy Scouts, and the Points of Light Foundation. He was also the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in 1994.

  Governor Romney received his B.A., with Highest Honors, from Brigham Young University in 1971. In 1975, he was awarded an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he was named a Baker Scholar, and a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School.

  Tim Pawlenty was born near the stockyards of South St. Paul. His father was a truck driver and his mother passed away when he was young. The first in his family to graduate from college, Pawlenty worked while attending the University of Minnesota and went on to become a criminal prosecutor.
  Upon being elected, Governor Pawlenty dealt with several major challenges. He resolved an historic $4.5 billion deficit without raising taxes and he replaced the failed Profile of Learning with more rigorous standards for Minnesota’s classrooms.

  Throughout his first term Governor Pawlenty has led the nation in allowing Minnesotans to purchase more affordable prescription drugs from Canada and the United Kingdom. He has also delivered record funding increases for our classrooms while cracking down on meth dealers, sex offenders and illegal immigrants.

  He has also undertaken an aggressive reform agenda, focusing on common-sense solutions for education, health care, agriculture and crime.

  Governor Pawlenty enjoys playing hockey and running, including the Twin Cities Marathon. He and his wife Mary live in Eagan with their two children.

  Mark Sanford was elected as South Carolina’s 115th governor in 2002 and re-elected in 2006, becoming only the third two-term governor in modern state history.

  His administration has been marked by a focus on improving people’s lives. By creating more economic opportunity, by watching out for the taxpayer, by working to reform government structure, by opening up South Carolina’s political system, and by bettering quality of life in the state, change of long-antiquated systems is beginning and South Carolina is becoming more competitive in the global economy.

  Governor Sanford’s adopted budget proposals have saved tens of millions of dollars. In 2003, South Carolina was in a $1 billion financial hole, including a $155 million unconstitutional deficit. In contrast, the 2007 budget process started in the black for the first time in 16 years.

  Under Governor Sanford’s leadership, South Carolina passed comprehensive tort reform and cut the marginal income tax rate – both firsts in state history. Today there are over 170,000 more people working than there were when Governor Sanford took office – a 15-year record for employment growth.

  The DMV was brought into the governor’s Cabinet, and reforms there have reduced average wait times from 66 minutes to 15 minutes. The landmark campaign finance reform and Commerce disclosure reform bills signed by Governor Sanford have brought much needed sunlight and accountability to state government, and, for the first time ever, campaign disclosure reports are now available online. The governor has held monthly “Open Door After 4” meetings in his office, where anyone from anywhere in the state can come by for a visit.

  The state passed first-of-its-kind charter school legislation to allow parents more choices in where their children attend school. As well, more land has been set aside during his governorship than under any other administration in South Carolina history.

  Further restructuring of South Carolina’s antiquated system of government continues to be one of Governor Sanford’s top priorities in his efforts to bring more accountability and cost-effectiveness to the state.

  Prior to being elected governor in 2002, Governor Sanford lived on the South Carolina coast with his wife, Jenny, and their four sons, Marshall, Landon, Bolton and Blake. Governor Sanford served six years in the U.S. Congress prior to his election as governor, and had no prior political experience before being elected to Congress in 1994.

  During his time in Washington, Governor Sanford was a tireless advocate for the taxpayer. For his consistent efforts to lower taxes and limit government growth he was ranked #1 in the entire Congress by Citizens Against Government Waste. He was rated similarly by the National Taxpayers’ Union, and Taxpayers for Common Sense inducted him into the Taxpayers Hall of Fame. In his own Congressional office, he backed his voting record with personal action – returning over $200,000 (almost a third of his total office budget) each year to the taxpayers.

  Governor Sanford learned the themes of hard work and frugality with his two brothers and sister on their family farm near Beaufort. He graduated from high school in Beaufort before attending Furman University in Greenville, where he received a B.A. in business. He later received an M.B.A. from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and went on to work in real estate finance and investment in New York and Charleston, SC.

  Yeah, you’re right, we’ve got no one to compare with the Great Joe Biden…

• 74. Mark Noonan  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:33 pm

  Casper,

  Oh, I can see the attempted appeal to blue collar and Catholic voters…but I don’t know how well he’ll do with that, and it should be quite an eye-opener for the Democrats to understand they have to try to lock down a substantial portion of their regular vote…

• 75. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:33 pm

  neocon,
  “Casper, I am sure if Obama picked Marion Berry as his VP, you’d be singing his praise to.”

  No I wouldn’t. Berry would bring nothing except negatives. I also wouldn’t have been real happy with Clinton. While it would help solidify the party, She would bring more drama than it’s worth. Bayh and Kaine would have been ok, but neither have anywhere close to the experience Biden has. Biden’s biggest problem will probably be his mouth. I’m sure he will give you guys plenty to write about, although I’m pretty sure he knows how many houses he owns.

• 76. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:39 pm

  neocon,
  I do agree with you that Romney would be a good choice for McCain. Much stronger than say Palin or Jindal. Palin is going through a scandal in Alaska and Jindal can’t keep a job for more than two years.

• 77. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:40 pm

  I don’t think Biden adds anything to the ticket other than problems. He was also wrong on Iraq, if you remember, opposing the surge in favor of dividing Iraq up into three tribal areas. But he also voted for the authorization of force in the first place, which wont sit well with the KOS kids.

  All in all, this does nothing for the O.

• 78. SEW  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:43 pm

  “although I’m pretty sure he knows how many houses he owns.” Casper

  Why so? On blowhard Joe

  ” He is not known for his concision or care with the facts. He added that he ”went to law school on a full academic scholarship — the only one in my class to have a full academic scholarship.” He also said that he ”ended up in the top half” of his class and won a prize in an international moot court competition. Biden still wasn’t done. In college, Biden said, he was ”the outstanding student in the political science department” and ”graduated with three degrees from college.”

  Reed then turns to Biden’s subsequent statement on this exchange. At Syracuse College of Law, Biden graduated 76th in a class of 85. He acknowledged: ”I did not graduate in the top half of my class at law school and my recollection of this was inacurate.” Just a slip of memory.

  As for receiving three degrees, Biden conceded: ”I graduated from the University of Delaware with a double major in history and political science. My reference to degrees at the Claremont event was intended to refer to these majors — I said ‘three’ and should have said ‘two.”’ His arithmetic was off.

  As for his undergraduate preeminence in the political science department — well, that was somebody else. But one of his professors thought he fit the bill. ”With regard to my being the outstanding student in the political science department,” the statement went on. ”My name was put up for that award by David Ingersoll, who is still at the University of Delaware.” Professor Ingersoll had it right!”

  As for his claim that he went to school on full academic scholarship: ”My recollection is — and I’d have to confirm this — but I don’t recall paying any money to go to law school.” Reed cites a Newsweek report that Biden had gone to Syracuse ”on half scholarship based on financial need.” About that moot court competition, however, Biden may have nailed it. Biden said he had won such a competition, with a partner, in Kingston, Ontario, on Dec. 12, 1967. So there!

  The 1988 campaign also gave us Biden’s infamous appropriation of Neil Kinnock’s life — and his speech reflecting on it — as Biden’s own. An article by Walter Shapiro on the subject provided this helpful background:

  During his first months at Syracuse University Law School, in 1965, Biden failed a course because he wrote a paper that used five pages from a published law-review article without quotation marks or a proper footnote. Since Biden was allowed to make up the course, the revelation was front-page news only because it kept the copycat contretemps alive.
  Shapiro also speculated why Biden’s confession to plagiarizing Kinnock’s speech might not put the affair behind him. “With a rambling and disjointed opening statement,” Shapiro observed regarding Biden’s press confernece, “Biden failed to reap the benefits of public confession, even though he called himself ’stupid’ and his actions ‘a mistake.’ Part of the problem is that he contradicted himself by also insisting that it was ‘ludicrous’ to attribute every political idea.”

  San Diego Union Tribune blog

• 79. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:51 pm

  “He was also wrong on Iraq, if you remember, opposing the surge in favor of dividing Iraq up into three tribal areas.”

  I wouldn’t be surprised to see Iraq broken up into three tribal areas five years from now. Of course McCain has been wrong on Iraq a lot more often than he’s been right.

• 80. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 2:57 pm

  Really?

  So in your infinite wisdom, you think Iraq would best be divided in three tribal regions, or still under the oppressive control of Saddam Hussein? But certainly not the current state of country unity and elected representative government and a growing and able ISF force?

  Or is that just because it was Bush’s plan? What is it Casper?

  Do you care for the Iraqis, or do you just hate Bush?

• 81. Casper  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 3:13 pm

  neocon,
  I didn’t say it would be for the best, just that I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up that way. Iraq isn’t in near as good of shape as you seem to think.

• 82. uffy  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 3:36 pm

  65 year old Joe Biden—oh my—-and didn’t the leftists on this blog say McCain was ready to tip over from old age?
  Joe Biden who voted to go into Iraq and use force–oh my!
  Joe Biden who basically said, “yup that Obama is a clean cut articulate black dude”! Oh my!
  Joe Biden who owns a compound with more than one house—oh my!
  Joe Biden who drives a gas guzzling pickup–Oh my!
  Joe Biden with 30 years of Congressional experience—there is change for ya! Oh my!
  Joe Biden who hasn’t a clue about the economy –and weren’t the leftists on this blog ripping McCain apart b/c of his statement he was not strong about economics! Oh my!
  Joe Biden who steals aka plagerizes–Oh my!
  Joe Biden who is called “gaffe Biden”–Oh my!
  Joe Biden who questioned Obama about his lack of experience and yet uplifted McCain—Oh my!
  WHERE IS THE CHANGE? YES YOU CAN WHAT?
  The Hillary voters must be furious.
  Riot gear anyone?

• 83. SEW  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 3:42 pm

  “Or is that just because it was Bush’s plan?”
  neocon
  More on “Bush’s war”, including Joe.

  http://www.bercasio.com/movies/dems-wmd-before-iraq.wmv

• 84. gotbrains?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 4:24 pm

  73. Noonan -

  Palin? Recently tainted by scandal, and unknown outside Alaska. She’s no longer even being considered.

  Jindal? Are you kidding? LOL! That pinhead doesn’t believe in evolution, used to do exorcisms, and has absolutely zero foreign policy experience. Do you really see a clueless kook like Jindal becoming president if old man McCain dies? And lets face it - McCain puts Jindal on the ticket and you can kiss your cherished “Bradley” effect goodbye.

  Romney? With all the influence the radical fundies have on your party, are you really going to put up a Mormon who was pro-choice until just before he ran for the Republican nomination? A greater panderer/flip-flopper you won’t find in politics - and that’s saying something. And he’s another mega-rich dude from family wealth who probably has no idea how many houses he has.

  Pawlenty? Sanford? Unknown, untested, and dead meat for Biden.

  Anyone else we’re forgetting? Mr “Noun, Verb, 9/11″? Yeah, he’d be a good match with Mr “Noun, Verb, POW”. Or maybe grandpa Thompson? That would secure the over 90 vote. Or maybe some wild-eyed xenophobe like Tancredo? Kiss AZ, NM, TX, and FL goodbye.

  Who else is there? Face it, this is a pertty lame crop of Republicans this year - even more so that usual.

  Obama/Biden - ready to kick arse and take no prisoners.

• 85. FmrMarine  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 4:32 pm

  uffy;

  BAD hairplugs OH MY LOL

• 86. FmrMarine  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 4:36 pm

  nobrains

  >>>are you really going to put up a Mormon who was pro-choice until just before he ran for the Republican nomination>>>

  WELL…..
  YOU guys put up a gay, drugusing, mulatto who thinks he is black…..so what is your point?

• 87. Dennis  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 4:48 pm

  There’s a good positive take on Biden by NYT coumnist and neocon apologist David Brooks - who’s probably a heck of a lot smarter than Noonan, even though he’s a neocon apologist.

  “While I don’t know who it is as I write, for the good of the country, I hope he [Obama] picked Joe Biden. Biden’s weaknesses are on the surface… But that won’t hurt all that much because voters are smart enough to forgive the genuine flaws of genuine people.”

  Brooks goes on to laud Biden’s working-class roots, honesty, loyalty and experience. He concludes by saying “Biden’s the one. The only question is whether Obama was wise and self-aware enough to know that.”

  Turns out, he was.

  See the rest here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/22/opinion/22brooks.html?em

• 88. Rich  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 5:08 pm

  I like Biden. But this was a terrible pick by Obama.
  Gotbrains, can you tell us what state Biden helps Obama with?

• 89. Danish Artist  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 6:16 pm

  Why are most insurance companies, large corporations, credit and mortgage companies incorporated in the state of Delaware?????

  Just asking. What will be their reaction to Obama’s corporate taxes, insurance reform, mortgage reform, etc. etc. when Biden has to back Obama’s ideas - how will he juggle the special interests and policy?

  How does Biden fit into Obama’s image campaign of Change by your “not a typical politician” illusion he is trying to present??

  Just asking.

• 90. extramedium  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 6:33 pm

  I really like Biden and am personally happy with the choice - in spite of his political shortcomings, he was my preferred guy in the democratic primary on issues. I also like his style, especially when he works the Sunday morning circuit - irreverent, but right on the money. Clinton was just about the same on issues, but I felt like we’d had enough Clintons and Bushes around for the the last 24 years and it was time for new blood.

  I hope the Clinton folks come around. I would have felt the same as they do if she was the presumptive nominee, but I’m hoping they will see in the end that four more years of Republican rule would be far too high a price to pay for teaching the party a lesson.

• 91. neocon  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 8:12 pm

  “….but I’m hoping they will see in the end that four more years of Republican rule would be far too high a price to pay for teaching the party a lesson.” - extra

  That ship has sailed. In a year when all you had to do was show up and breathe, you blew it. The Democrats are way to over confident and will have their ass handed to them in November. Obama/Biden doesn’t have a chance.

  gotbrains?

  You mean you don’t like any of the GOP VP candidates? And continually throw school yard epithets at them. I am shocked.

• 92. Jeremiah  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 8:35 pm

  I think the thing that is truly confounding, is the fact that Biden agrees that life begins at conception, but then at the same time agrees to allow partial-birth abortion.

  Biden shows that he is willing to compromise with evil, as liberalism trumps all in the Democratic party these days.

  He also voted no on criminal penalty for harming of an unborn child.

  Just goes to show that Biden like the majority of liberal democrats these days proclaim faith but aren’t truly faithful, but are hypocrites.

• 93. hermie  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 8:50 pm

  The number one reason that Obama chose Biden:

  Because another 5-letter name added balance to campaign signs.

  Otherwise, adding Biden to the ticket is like giving an anchor to a drowning man.

• 94. Jeremiah  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 9:21 pm

  56. gotbrains? | August 23rd, 2008 at 11:51 am

  In the end, gotnobrains?, that is what will work against Biden, his arrogance and spiteful attitude will put the damper on him real quick.

  The only people will take a liking to his kind of attitude are those just like him, disrespectful, un-mannerly bigots.

• 95. What?  |  August 23rd, 2008 at 11:18 pm

  Former Marine writes:
  “WELL…..
  YOU guys put up a gay, drugusing, mulatto who thinks he is black…..so what is your point?”

  Oh former marine, you are a class act.
  Also, where di you get that idea Obama is gay? Is this a new rightwing blogger story that working its way through the Internet?

  To the conservatives here:

  It is pretty much accepted that Romney is a on McCain’s short list of VP picks. How do you feel about Romney’s 5 sons not serving in the military? Is this something you gripe about when you aren’t speaking around “liberals?”

• 96. kmg  |  August 24th, 2008 at 12:16 am

  Jeremiah,

  Mark won’t answer this, but maybe you will. McCain said a fertilized egg is endowed with human rights at the Saddleback forum. Given that statement, how do you reconcile his voting for embryonic stem cell research? Doesn’t that make him a hypocrite that is just as willing to compromise with evil? Knowing that these are his positions, if you vote for him are you compromising with evil?

• 97. phnx  |  August 24th, 2008 at 12:23 am

  “It is pretty much accepted that Romney is a on McCain’s short list of VP picks. How do you feel about Romney’s 5 sons not serving in the military? Is this something you gripe about when you aren’t speaking around “liberals?” What?

  As you may or may not know, military service is not currently mandatory, there is no draft. This is in contrast to when Joe Biden graduated from college. In order to avoid military service, Biden enrolled in law school, like many attorneys of his age.

  So if you don’t have a problem with Biden’s lack of service, or Obama’s lack of service, why should we care about Romney’s sons, none of which are running for national office?

• 98. phnx  |  August 24th, 2008 at 12:27 am

  OBTW, none of Romney’s sons are defendants in multi-million dollar lawsuit alledging fraud…unlike Biden’s son.

• 99. Jeremiah  |  August 24th, 2008 at 1:46 am

  McCain said a fertilized egg is endowed with human rights at the Saddleback forum. Given that statement, how do you reconcile his voting for embryonic stem cell research? Doesn’t that make him a hypocrite that is just as willing to compromise with evil? Knowing that these are his positions, if you vote for him are you compromising with evil?

  kmg,

  No, because that’s really not what is at issue here, the issue is about the intrinsic worth of human life. I know that John McCain will without a doubt, appoint Supreme Court Justices who will do what is right, and put an end to the murder of unborn children. Because McCain is pro-life, and recognizes that intrinsic worth. You can’t put a price on life, my friend, as God is the giver of life from the beginning, and it remains His to give it, and to take it away as He so chooses. Then you say, “Well what about sanctioning death penalty for murderers … that’s taking away life isn’t it?”
  Yes, it is, but that’s why God created Civil Laws, in order that people may come to an understanding of what is right, and therefore, are commissioned to submit to the law as it is written…”THOU SHALL NOT MURDER”. It’s plain.

  Now, under Obama, murder would rule - assault, gun, and battery felons would be put in prison where taxpayer money goes up in smoke, while the innocent unborn children are murdered for self-convenience and taxpayer money fuels the butchering of their little bodies.

  You see, we would be slaving, for others to mis-behave and siphon off the gov. tit. Which is ethically impossible unless you’re a liberal believes in giving aid to miscreants.

  Shame! Shame! Shame!

• 100. What?  |  August 24th, 2008 at 3:39 am

  Phnx,
  Quit dodging the question. A candidate’s lack of service never bothers me. That was not the question. The question is whether Romney’s sons’ failure to serve concerns those of you who supported the Iraq War.

  Romney ran as a huge supporter of this current war. He believes in its expansion. Yet he did not encourage his sons to fight in it. So basically he is willing to send other people’s children to die but does not believe in the cause enough to send his own to sacrafice.

  Your response is typical of the right in that it dodges the question by trying to point to similar behavior of your opponent (although in this case your comparison is stretching it since Biden did not support the Vietnam war).

  What does this strategy leave you with, Phnx? Do you think pointing out Obama’s failure to join the military makes your potential VP candidate’s behavior more acceptable? Do you think I consider your answer to be some brilliant point that explains Romney’s actions?

  I’ll tell you what you are doing, Phnx. You are making excuses. You can’t answer for your own party so you try to claim everyone is doing it. This doesn’t answer the question. It also makes you look like a stooge willing to overlook your party’s failings instead of criticizing them.

  Now, answer the question posed. How do you feel that Mitt Romney would continue a war which he did not encourage his sons participate in? Don’t you think his actions demonstrate his own unwillingness to sacrafice for what he claims is an important war? Is this the type of person you believe would make a good vice president?

  You have choices here. You can either defend Romney’s decison to not encourage his sons to fight or you can condemn it. Telling me Joe Biden wasn’t in the military is not an option as it does not explain your opinion on the issue posed.

  Also, you wrote this:
  “why should we care about Romney’s sons, none of which are running for national office?”

  Do you seriously think a child’s behavior is not a reflection on that child’s parents or is this a convenient statement made to dodge the question at hand?

  Also, if Romney cannot convince even one of his five sons to serve in a war he claims to be vital to this nation’s survival, he 1) is a failure as a communicator or 2) he raised sons unwilling to make a sacrafice for their nation. It could also be that the Romney kids decided that Dad was wrong and the war wasn’t worth fighting. In any event, it reflects poorly on Romney.

  To be fair I respect McCain’s son’s service. I also admire McCain’s decision to not speak of his son’s service on the campaign trail.

• 101. What?  |  August 24th, 2008 at 3:48 am

  As for Biden’s son, I will pass judgement on him after a jury decides whether he is liable or not.

  Sadly, you give another example of how your only way to fight back is to point the finger back at your opponent on a completely unrelated issue.

• 102. kmg  |  August 24th, 2008 at 8:21 am

  Jeremiah,

  If you believe that life begins at conception, which McCain said he now does believe, what is the difference between abortion and embryonic stem cell research? The embryo is intentionally “killed” in both cases. How can McCain appose abortion for any reason or at any point in a woman’s pregnancy, yet support destroying an embryo for scientific research? Doesn’t holding an absolute anti-abortion position force one to also appose ESCR as well as invitro fertilization?

• 103. phnx  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:00 am

  What? You obvioulsy don’t understand english. The answer is NO, I could care less if Romney’s son served in the military or not.

  But since you made military service an issue, both of your candidates didged their opportunity to serve. And apparently this doesn’t trouble you.

  And BTW, the topic is Biden, not Romney so you are the one who is deflecting and diverting and failing to defend your candidate.

  The amusing thing about Biden’s predicament is that he “encouraged” his son to get out of the lobbying business because it would reflect negatively on his bid for the President. How do you suppose Biden’s son, who had no experience in Hedge Funds, wind up directing one for a salary of $1.2 million per year. Does this sound like those working class roots?

• 104. phnx  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:03 am

  “Do you seriously think a child’s behavior is not a reflection on that child’s parents”

  So by this I take it you think that Biden is a crook as well. I wouldn’t go that far but if the shoe fits…

• 105. gotbrains?  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:10 am

  phnx & what?

  You two do know that Biden’s son served in Iraq, and is about to be deployed again?

  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/21/bidens-son-going-to-iraq_n_120329.html

• 106. gotbrains?  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:13 am

  phnx -

  do you care to slander anymore Iraq vets this morning?

• 107. neocon  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:34 am

  gotbrains?

  Do you realize that your views represent maybe 1% of the population? You, and your far left ilk, are the reason why Obama is slipping in the polls. The center-right moderate majority electorate are starting to take a close look at Obama, and realize that since he enjoys such strong support from the likes of you, that there must be something wrong.

  And they’re right.

  Obama will lose spectacularly and the far left will be dismissed like the unruly school children they are.

  Have a nice day
  neocon

• 108. neocon  |  August 24th, 2008 at 9:49 am

  gotbrains?,

  Since approx. 1.5% of the entire population currently serves in the armed services, why do you hold that up as a benchmark for love of country?

  Are you saying that 98.5% of the population does not love their country?

  And if a childs behaviour is a reflection of the parenting, shouldn’t we incarcerate the parents of Ted Bundy, Jeff Dahmer, etc.?

  How about Harry Reids three boys, who immediately went to work as lobbyists when their Dad was appointed Speaker? What kind of reflection is that on Harry?

• 109. Danish Artist  |  August 24th, 2008 at 11:32 am

  “do you care to slander anymore Iraq vets this morning?”

  Wishedhehadbrains! So I take it you disagree with the slander of our troops by Murther, Reid, Pelosi, Kerry, Gore and the Chosen one?

  You leftists use “veteran” status only when it suits you. The rest of the time they are just murdering invading baby killers who break in the dead of night to do their evil during their illegal occupation, but what do you expect of those who can’t read so they’ll end of in Iraq.

  Why not denigrate those leftists who slander our troops?

  But when you take you lemming obamaton talking points from them, how can we expect you to do the right thing?

  Have a crappy day as your golden boy chosen one keeps falling in the polls.

• 110. Jeremiah  |  August 24th, 2008 at 2:19 pm

  They said there was a riot at Denver today - The liberal whackjobs don’t want to let Fox News in.

• 111. FmrMarine  |  August 25th, 2008 at 10:34 am

  whatTF
  >>>>>>Also, where di you get that idea Obama is gay? Is this a new rightwing blogger story that working its way through the Internet?>>>>

  NO it is a FIRST hand account, by the man oBOMBa gave a BJ to while spaced out on drugs.

  “barack Obama Gay Sex and drug use

  On January 23rd 2008 on the Jeff Rense radio program, a man named Larry Sinclair made stunning claims about Senator Barack Obama. Sinclair claimed that in 1999 he met Barack Obama and Obama purchased and supplied him with cocaine. Sinclair also claims that he performed a sex act on the Senator and the Senator smoked crack cocaine during the evening.”