black…MYstory

The last time we were voting on a president, the Republican attack machine was running full-steam, fueled by loads of cash.

Fast-forward to 2008 and it appears that the money for these groups is beginning to dry up.

While far from broke, funding for these groups pales to 2004.  While having more money than they did at this point in 2004, these groups are still $50 million dollars behind the Democratic-leaning 527 groups.  Furthermore, the big money donors and groups seem to be either sitting this one out or moving their focuses away from the presidential race.

The reasons for this decline vary.  Some fear reprisal from the Federal Election Commission, which said that the Swiftboat Veterans for Truth went too far in 2004 so, it will be scrutinizing 527’s more heavily.  Other contributors fear that their actions could damage their standing with business clients.  Yet others are just not satisfied with McCain as a candidate, particularly when he has been so critical of 527’s in the past.

While we can’t count them out until the ballots have been cast, it does appear the the right-wing attack machine might be operating signifcantly under capacity.

Popularity: 11% [?]

It’s sad to say this but, on his 90th birthday, it literally took an act of Congress to remove Nelson Mandela’s name from the terror watch list.

Mandela’s name had been put on the list because of his activities against the apartheid regime in South Africa.

As a result, this has affected his ability to travel within the United States.

Stating the obvious, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice said that having Mandela’s name still on this list was “embarrassing”.

Next, the bill goes to President for his signature.  Let’s hope he doesn’t veto it.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Congratulations to Donna Edwards of Lanham, MD. Ms. Edwards won a special election yesterday for the vacated seat of Rep. Albert Wynn to become Maryland’s first black woman to be elected to Congress.

Congresswoman Edwards has a background as a lawyer and as an executive for a nonprofit in Prince George’s County, MD.

Wynn’s exit came sooner than expected. Edwards had previously defeated him in the Democratic primary, making her the party’s candidate for the fall but, Wynn decided to pursue a lobbying career so, he vacated early.

Edwards defeated Republican Peter James in the special election for the seat, which she will hold for the rest of this year. Edwards will meet James again in the general election in the fall.

Regardless of the outcome, Ms. Edwards has solidified her place in history.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Often, when I think about the current wars we are in, I don’t think about what will be asked of me. Instead, I think about my 5-year-old son. My son was born just a few months after we invaded Iraq. I know that the wrong choice of president could mean that, one day, my son could be called up for compulsory military service as we commemorate our 18th year of war in that country. I don’t want that for my child and I don’t see John McCain as a path away from that possibility.

So, when I saw this ad from MoveOn.org, I couldn’t help but think of what’s at stake this November.

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I was watching Countdown last night and there was reaction to John McCain’s comments on the Today Show where he stated that it was “not too imporant” when troops come home from Iraq, as long as they are not taking casualties. Keith Olbermann spoke with Brandon Friedman from Vote Vets to ask what McCain’s statements could mean to troops in the field.

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This one comes courtesy of Crooks and Liars and it’s a good one. It’s a clip from a C-Span appearance by Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas. Hensarling, like a lot of Republicans, is trying to blame America’s fiscal problems on the Democrats, despite the fact that they have held the presidency since 2001, had a majority of the House from 1994 through 2006 and had a Senate Majority from 2002 through 2006. That means for a good 4-year stretch, they had the legislative and executive branches of government on lock (some would argue that with their judicial appointment, they also controlled this branch). So, with them controlling the reins, you can’t blame others when things go off-track.

This is a compilation of the callers to the show that blasted him. Notice that these including some callers who identified themselves as Republicans.

The video is below:

 

 Hensarling on C-Span: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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The Associated Press has a story out on some of the biggest mistakes made by the Clinton campaign that cost her the nomination.

Honestly, I had thought for the longest time that she was poorly-served by the people around her, not the least of which was her own husband, former President Bill Clinton.

She has said some things that caused me to raise an eyebrow but, for the most part, it was the management of her campaign and the surrogates that spoke for her that left me most taken aback.

One section of this article stood out for me. It was how the actions of Bill Clinton ended up costing Hillary Clinton the black vote when, at the time, she enjoyed a significant advantage with black voters. It sums ups what I saw quite nicely:

Until January of this year, former President Clinton had been viewed as an asset for his wife among her aides and supporters. Although reviled by conservatives for his affair with a White House intern, Bill Clinton remained a beloved figure among Democratic audiences, particularly blacks, who remembered the 1990s as relatively prosperous and his efforts on their behalf.

That changed in South Carolina, where the former president campaigned vigorously for his wife. Her advisers, aware of his tendency to go off message, had urged him to stay positive and talk up her accomplishments, not criticize Obama.

But Bill Clinton chafed at the campaign’s reluctance to take on the Illinois senator, particularly over what the former president viewed as conflicts between Obama’s rhetoric of opposition to the Iraq war and his voting record. So he took it on himself to speak out, with calamitous results.

Obama soundly won South Carolina, and Bill Clinton then made things worse. He seemed to diminish Obama’s triumph by noting that civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, never the presidential contender that Obama had already become, had also won the state’s primary years earlier.

Once so popular among blacks he was dubbed the first black president by author Toni Morrison, Bill Clinton had helped drive those voters away from his wife. Obama’s already strong black support would climb to as much as 90 percent of the black vote in subsequent contests.

Popularity: 17% [?]

Congratulations, Barack Obama!

Last night, you went on to become the first black presidential nominee in U.S. history. More importantly, you are now the candidate designated to lead us out of the darkness of the last 7+ years.

So, for a moment, savor your victory then…get back to work!

We have a country to change.

Popularity: 10% [?]

We might now know why the Clinton campaign adamantly denied today that their candidate will concede.

In a word — leverage.

It now appears that Hillary Clinton has signaled that she would be open to be Obama’s Vice-president.

Perhaps her delay on announcing her exit of the race would be for just that reason and put her in the position to bargain for the spot.

While it would not be the “dream ticket” I would envision, it could help unite the party (did I just say that?)

So, it seems the veepstakes is on and Hillary Clinton may have just thrown her name in the hat.

Popularity: 15% [?]

Well, we already know that tonight marks the end of the primary season. For a while now, we have heard rumblings that indicated that we could see a delegate fight at the Democratic National Convention in August, which would pose a huge risk to the chances of a Democratic candidate in November.

However, there are signals that this won’t happen.

Today, the breaking news is that Hillary Clinton’s speech tonight will be a concession speech. According to senior officials on her campaign, if Obama has the 40 remaining delegates (pledged and super) that he needs to reach the magic number of 2,118, Senator Clinton will acknowledge Obama as the Democratic nominee.

However, it appears that she will not say that she is formally ending her run.

At any rate, I’ll be up late tonight awaiting this. If this is the case, it will not be the Obama victory speech that everyone will be awaiting. Instead, it will be the concession speech that will own tonight’s coverage.

Update: Now, some in the Clinton campaign say she will not concede. So, we will see which of these stories prove to be true tonight.

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