This Is The Kind Of Thing I Mean
From the Obama campaign:
“At 8:30 this morning, Senator Obama called Senator McCain to ask him if he would join in issuing a joint statement outlining their shared principles and conditions for the Treasury proposal and urging Congress and the White House to act in a bipartisan manner to pass such a proposal. At 2:30 this afternoon, Senator McCain returned Senator Obama’s call and agreed to join him in issuing such a statement. The two campaigns are currently working together on the details.”
Then John McCain runs to the media and makes a statement. Not with the Obama campaign, not with bipartisan leaders….but acting like this was all his idea and then pushing it a step further- suspending his own campaign and asking Friday’s debate be delayed. Which, by the way, is stupid.
McCain is down in the polls and weak on the economy- OF COURSE HE WANTS THE DEBATE TO BE DELAYED.
We have a name for guys like that…opportunistic douche bags.
I know that lowers the level of rhetoric around here, but when Senator Obama reaches out to try and solve this in a bipartisan fashion, and initiates both campaigns working together… then McCain USES that good faith as a ploy….seriously. Opportunistic douche baggery.
There is a special place in hell for douche bags of that level.
Go check out Liz over at MOMocrats who writes,
It’s just been announced that John McCain has requested to postpone the presidential debates so that he can ‘focus on the economy.’ Which almost sounds like a good idea. Until you realized that when Obama started focusing on the economy months ago by convening a major economic summit in Florida with a bipartisan team of advisors including Warren Buffet, Google Chair Eric Schmidt, and former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neil–McCain dismissed it as ‘political theater.’
Slimy shit like this is exactly why I think Republicans can #suckit.
Dear Senator McCain, Why Not Just Piss On Detroit ala a Calvin And Hobbes Bumper Sticker
…because it would be less painful. And messy.
I actually caught your interview not too long ago on WXYZ in Detroit. You know, the one where you said you’ve bought American literally your whole life?
Let me break this down for you as only a girl born and raised in Michigan can:
If you’ve literally bought American your whole life, ‘Sheed is an anger management expert.
Even if we DON’T count the Toyota your daughter owns (the one you bragged about buying her and then tried to tell us you didn’t buy) you still have a VW, a Lexus, and a Honda.
The last I checked, those cars are not made by any of the people I grew up with , my family members, or my neighbors from back in the day.
But let’s go ahead and pretend what kind of car(s) you own isn’t a big deal. Heck, we own a Prius in this house. We own a Family and Friends deal Chrsyler too…but, I digress. Let’s just get to the real meat of the issue and hear your plans to save the city in which I spent my youth.
Oh, that’s right. You don’t have any.
As I hear it, you’ve failed to support American auto manufacturers with loans to help them build the next generation of fuel efficient vehicles. And just like in your WXYZ interview, you LIED to Michigan and claimed to support these loans, but you actually have a record of opposing them. The first time they came around, you flat out denied them. You even went as far as to dismiss the idea last month as “predicting failure on the part of the automakers.”
Did I mention here the Obama family only owns one car? A Ford hybrid.
Did I also mention Senator Obama has a plan that includes NEW jobs for Detroit and a revitalization of the auto industry? Oh, and a nice plan for our Great Lakes just to put some icing on that cake….
No lies there. Just solid plans. Bold plans.
What did Michigan get from you, Senator McCain? A few speeches and stops at our nuclear (which your running mate can’t pronounce) plants.
Senator, you lied to Michigan. You lied to Detroit. You lied to my friends. You lied to my family.
And now they all know.
Southern California “Read My Lipstick: I’m Voting for Obama!” VP Debate Watching Party
Let’s raise some money for the Obama campaign and get snarky while we watch Palin.
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Because I Want To See A Bit of Me In That White House, Too
I’m sitting in my hotel room in Vegas watching Senator Barack Obama speak from Coral Gables, Florida. It’s a women’s rally and he’s talking a lot about his wife, Michelle.
“…if she’s at work she’s thinking about the kids, if she’s with the kids she’s thinking about work…”
Apparently what Michelle Obama goes through is exactly what I go through.
Now, I have no way of knowing if Cindy McCain has these issues…but you certainly don’t hear the Senator or Cindy discussing it. I have no doubt it’s because they have no clue what the average person goes through on a daily basis…but I digress…
In order for me to attend the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, my in-laws had to come to town to watch the kids. In order for me to attend the BlogHer conference, my parents came into town. In order for me to be here in Las Vegas at Blog World Expo, I had to make arrangements with my girlfriends to pick up the kids from school and for Dad to get them after work.
Then there was the making sure all their picture day forms were filled out in advance, their clothes ready for Saturday activities like ballet. My daughter has a runny nose and I fretted the whole way to the airport, wondering what would happen to my husband’s job if he had to stay home with her. If I would just cancel and fly home…
I sit here now wondering if my 5-year old had cafeteria lunch again today and if he’ll go to bed on time tonight. If my 3-year old has enough tissue in her backpack…and so on and so forth.
But mind you, if I were home, I’d be thinking about what sort of speaking gig I was missing in Vegas, if something could have been accomplished or some deal not done because I wasn’t there.
It never ends, this push and pull. And Senator Obama, speaking today of his wife, reminded me I’m not alone. I’m not the only mom who goes through this and I am not the only woman who struggles to balance.
Maybe it’s naive of me to want a First Lady who I think reflects my life a bit. Who talks about her goals and her girls. Maybe it’s a very small thing in this grand election with so many issues and twists. However that mindset…that reflection I see…is exactly what turns into Senator Obama’s plans and policy. His blueprint for change has more women focused and family focused initiatives and plans than I’ve ever seen in a campaign.
So while I ready myself to head to yet another convention center, worrying about my son and wondering if he turned in his homework…I will know I’m not alone.
Thanks Michelle. And thank you Senator, for sharing that part of your lives.
I Played Basketball AND Softball. Trump That Palin!
In my home state, where I played varsity basketball for four years, Senator John McCain saw fit to bring up his running mate’s point guard prowess as a qualification on how she will empower women.
Well first let me take a shot at that, and I’ll tell ya, I’m a product of Title IX in our schools, where equal education and equal opportunities in sports really helped propel me into the—I guess into the position that I’m in today where,” Palin said.
McCain then interjected, “Could I mention she was a point guard on a state championship basketball team.”
After the crowd’s applause died down, Palin continued: ‘”Sports were very, very important to me growing up, you know just learning about self discipline and healthy competition and about what it takes to win and even how to graciously lose sometimes. But how to win, that’s what it teaches ya. Now, I was a product of Title IX where legislation allowed that equal opportunity. Now if we have to still keep going down that road to create more legislation, to get with it in the 21st century, to make sure that women do have equality especially in the work place, then we’re there because we understand that in this age we have all got to be working together. I respect you so much that you are a Democrat recognizing that John McCain and me as a team of mavericks understand where you’re coming from, and we can work together on these issues. But yup, equality for women, for all, that’s going to be part of the agenda and I thank you for that question.”
In case you missed that…those are two Republicans touting Title IX and using her point guard experience as how Palin will ’empower’ women if she’s elected.
By those standards, pigs just flew and my vast high school athletic experience, coupled with my new PTA role, qualifies me as the next Queen of the Mother Fucking world. Screw VP, I’m aiming higher.
The 2008 GOP platform has some language not exactly RAH! RAH! Title IX in case you want to take a look. You see the Bush Administration thought it was bad and essentially ordered a review and slammed Title IX.
So by these standards, Palin and McCain are touting their Alaskan point guard to the tune of a program their party tried to eliminate. And there is evidence McCain isn’t even clear on what Title IX actually DOES.
Lovely.
And by the way, I was as small forward. I could, and still can, block out Palin with my hips and steal the ball. And have every intention of doing so in this election.
If You Vote Obama, My Family Will Keep Their Ears
We’ve been clipping coupons for awhile now. Ok, my husband has been clipping coupons for awhile now.
This weekend I cut both my son and husbands’ hair myself. I only drew blood once.
These are not huge things, but they are a sign of the times. In case you missed it, the Dow is down by 500 points, Lehman Brothers, a firm that survived the American Depression, has filed for the largest Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. history, and everyone is running around going ‘aaaaaahhhhhhhh sssshhhiiiiittttttt!!!!’
I don’t know about your family…but mine is pretty much going…’umm, yeah….we know…join the coupon clipping party.’
I have friends who are now sending their kids to preschool only twice a week, to cut back on bills. I have family considering moving in with other family members so they don’t charge another grocery store trip. While my husband and I would consider moving out of Los Angeles, our home is now worth about $150,000 less than what we paid. I’ve taken a full-time job. My mother is now working simply for the health insurance. Sign. Of. The. Times.
What the hell is going on? And how do we fix it? Because as much as I don’t mind sitting in my backyard cutting hair…I can only nick so many ears before my family demands better.
I also write this, somewhat hesitantly, because I know we are the lucky ones. We have jobs. We have a home. We have little to complain about. But I would be remiss if I didn’t think of my friends, my family, my neighbors, and the rest of the country when I see the headlines and watch the reports.
But here is the thing…and it’s the thing that got me writing this blog post and the thing that drives me…I firmly believe Senator John McCain is NOT one of us. I realize that is a harsh statement…but…DAMN. With an heiress wife and a lack of knowledge of ANYTHING relevant to ME…he just has no clue.
I wasn’t the only one who heard it.
The Obama campaign picked up on it too. John McCain told Judy Wudroff – “It’s easy for me to go to Washington and, frankly, be somewhat divorced from the day-to-day challenges people have.”
To which I yelled at my tv “NO FUCKING SHIT ASSHOLE!”
I realize that is a bit harsh. But it’s how I felt.
John McCain has no clue- NO CLUE– what average Americans go through. NONE, except for what is put in front of him in a memo as he sits in one of his MANY homes. I do not believe for ONE SECOND that he understand the out-of-work Detroit auto-worker or the single mother. NOT FOR ONE SECOND.
Which leads me to why I think Senator Barack Obama does…and frankly, it’s easy.
He’s lived it.
He’s doing well now, sure. So am I. But he at the very least GETS IT, and I will go a step further: he gets it and RESPECTS it. Maybe that’s the bigger key…he RESPECTS it.
Go ahead and laugh at me. Tell me I’ve been taken by yet another politician and that this guy doesn’t get it as I’m a dreamer for thinking he does. But I will tell you something…and I will tell you it FROM MY TOES…I have met him. I have met hundreds of politicians and done hundreds of interviews. You can tell when they spout statements and taking points. You can tell when they speak what you want to hear, not what needs to be said. You can also tell when they speak from experience. Which is exactly what Senator Obama does when he talks about having little money and having a single mom and speaking with people on the streets of Chicago.
However, you can’t just take my gut as a reason to vote. You can’t. While I wish you would all take my gut as a reason…that would be stupid. So…Just having lived it and ‘getting it’ isn’t enough. And while we all want someone we can related to running things ( see: conservative women finding kinship in Sarah Palin) I am smart enough to know just ‘getting it’ won’t fix this country’s problems.
Thus Obama’s plan. It does not favor the rich. It does not favor those running large companies and it most certainly does benefit women, families, and the working class. While I don’t want to punish the rich…I want the working class to be empowered. I want women to be empowered. I want families to be empowered.
I, very simply, want my parents to have health insurance and I want to send my husband and son to get their hair cut at a salon.
I want…I want many things. But I want leaders that know and understand what needs to be done and just WHO needs help. Please, listen to Senator Joe Biden at MY high school in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. MINE. Where I was the editor of the paper and where I played varsity basketball. MY HIGH SCHOOL.
Yes, Senator Obama knows and understands what is happening enough to send his Vice Presidential candidate to the South Lake High in St. Clair Shores- because he KNOWS how many of my friends are now out of work. Because he KNOWS how many of MY family members need tax relief. Because he understands what has happened in the home town I love.
People I know need help making their next mortgage payment. People I know want to send their kids to better schools. People I know just want a job.
Please watch Senator Biden. Please listen to what he says about the Obama-Biden ticket. Please hear his rant against McCain. Then head over to BlogHer.com and read Michelle Obama’s latest blog post on equal pay.
Listen. Read. Watch.
Watch and understand this is from where I spent 4-years of my life in school and 19-years growing up. THIS right here is how much the Obama campaign gets it…
I’m Just Hoping By November 5th, I Still Have Friends
A sad and disturbing thing happened at Kindergarten this week.
I finally started talking to some other parents.
I then immediately alienated them.
It started innocently enough. I was volunteering to work in the class room, discussing dates with the ‘room mom’ when her husband showed up. He, of course, introduced himself and we all chatted like old friends.
This is the couple that had already met my husband and chatted. In the back of my mind I was thinking ‘sweet! friends! I wonder if they drink?’ when I got the ‘so what do you do?’ question.
‘I’m the political director for a site called blogher, it’s a network of women bloggers.’
‘Oh, really…so what do you think of this Palin thing…she’s getting a lot of the women’s vote, huh?’
And then…something happend. It was like, involuntary. I launched into this tirade on women voters and issues and how, actually, a new study showed Clinton voters are now 55% less likely to vote for McCain due to the Palin pick and women actually vote on issues, not gender…so assuming they would vote for Palin based on gender was not only untrue but rather insulting…and on, and on, and on.
He then politely said something to his wife about his dentist appointment and left the table, moving to talk to a much less crazy mother.
I can’t even have a normal conversation while waiting for Kindergarten pick-up. I am hopelessly trapped in the echo-chamber and I see no real escape until November 5th, 2008.
I just hope I will have friends when it’s all over.
Scratch that, I don’t care if I have friends so long as Obama wins. Then I’ll work on that friend thing. And maybe talk about something like…the weather.
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