Santorum for President

This should warm the heart of the Mean Old Man.

POLITICO has learned Santorum will visit first-in-the-nation Iowa this fall for a series of appearances before the sort of conservative activists who dominate the state GOP’s key presidential caucuses.

.

Our former junior Senator and Virginia resident is going to Iowa which always starts Presidential speculation about any politician. The great mentioner has also plugged him for Governor in 2010 and in real fit of delusion even a Supreme Court nominee when Sarah Palin becomes President in 2012, among other posts. Vice President Michelle Bachmann would be in charge of getting him confirmed by the Senate.

.

Thanks to pa2010.com for highlighting this.

The President speaks to Congress

After 8 long years it's great to able to utter the phrase "The President" instead of the present occupant of the White House. I took off early from work to hear him tell us things are tough but we will emerge better than ever ala saint Ronny. In the response Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal sounded down right stupid when he cited the response to Hurricane Katrina as a highlight.

Some of my favorite lines:

"Dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It’s not just quitting on yourself, it’s quitting on your country."

"There is no program or policy that can substitute for a mother or father."

"For seven years, we have been a nation at war. No longer will we hide its price."

"Living our values doesn’t make us weaker, it makes us safer and it makes us stronger. And that is why I can stand here tonight and say without exception or equivocation that the United States of America does not torture."

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Some reaction.

From Congressman Chris Carney

“Tonight the President laid out his comprehensive approach to addressing the economic crisis facing our country. I appreciated his optimism and his candor—the President was honest about the challenges we face as a nation—but it is critical at this juncture that we remain disciplined and responsible when spending the taxpayers’ hard earned money.

“I met with the President at the White House two weeks ago to talk about the importance of fiscal responsibility and a budget that adheres to those principles.

Tonight, the President outlined his bold vision for a Financial Stability Plan with oversight and accountability. This plan is designed not to help banks, but to help people. It creates a guarantee that taxpayer money is safe, that our banks start lending and that if they do receive taxpayer funds, they will not be allowed to use them for their own perks. The oversight is a strong step in the right direction, but our spending must be curtailed so we do not continue passing debt onto our grandchildren.

“I remain concerned with the President’s housing plan. I represent a district where over 98% of people pay their mortgages on time. Northeast and central Pennsylvania is made up of hardworking, responsible people who did not fall prey to the greed and corruption we have seen dismantling our financial institutions on Wall Street.

Congressman Paul Kanjorski

“I applaud President Obama for speaking candidly to the American public about the difficult economic situation we now face. He has set significant goals for himself, the Congress, and the American people as he addressed new policies in dealing with the economy, the national budget, and our actions abroad. These are not light topics and the President has stated that he intends to deal with all of them simultaneously. But, it is this type of thoughtful and assertive thinking that will help move this country forward and take us out of the troubled situation in which we find ourselves.

“As the President stressed, we must come together for the sake of every American. Partisanship is not an option. While we may disagree, we must try to move past these obstacles. Our primary responsibility is helping every American recover from the economic crisis, and as a result boosting our nation’s economy.

Just since President Obama was sworn into office, we have already taken momentous steps towards such progress. While there is certainly room for improvement, President Obama has shown a distinct willingness to turn this country around.

“As we work to turn the tide on our economic problems, we must also work to ensure that a financial crisis of this magnitude does not happen again. The President stressed the need to pursue regulatory reforms of the financial services industry, and I strongly support this idea. I have long stressed the need for comprehensive regulatory reform, and I have already held two hearings this year to highlight why the Congress must expeditiously address this issue in the 111th Congress. I applaud President Obama for also recognizing the importance of this issue.

“As I have continued to stress, fixing our economy will not happen overnight, but I have faith that we will emerge from these tough times stronger than ever.”

How did your neighborhood vote

If you live in Luzerne County you can check it out. 135,965 people in Luzerne County cast a ballot in the Presidential race with Obama topping McCain by just over 11,000 votes, 53%-45%.


I was interested in how my little corner of the world voted and thanks to the Luzerne County Bureau of Elections website I have my answer. 805 out of 1015 registered voters in Ward 4 of Plains Twp made it to the polls Tuesday for a turnout of 80%. The tally was 426 votes for Obama 55% to McCain's 349 or 45%. Paul Kanjorski also topped Lou Barletta 423 votes (54%) to 364 (46%) despite Mayor Lou winning the neighborhood yard sign war.






There were very few problems on election day in the county and as much as I bash the Luzerne County government I must give credit when credit is due. Director of Elections Leonard Piazza and his staff did an outstanding job. They anticipated many of the potential problems with the iVotronic machines and the non-partisan, non-profit organization VotersUnite.org based in Seattle, Washington cited Luzerne County as a national leader in elections management. They released a scathing report on the business practices of Election Systems and Software (ES&S) who is the supplier of our voting machines. The good news is that Piazza didn't give into the ES&S bullying and blackmail and took control of the machines. The report gives the play by play of what happened. Take a minute and check out pages 40 to 42 of the report.


I have found Leonard Piazza to be one of the most responsive people in our county government. Whenever I have asked him a question he has always got back to me in a few hours. He has been a good leader and manager and the best measurement of that is he has hired very good people to do the job. They even keep their cool even when some candidate wanders into the office at 5 minutes to 5PM demanding all sorts of documents and keep them there for hours after closing time. I hope he runs for elective office such as Controller or Commissioner. Piazza even acts on suggestions from cranks like me who wanted campaign finance reports online. He is one the good guys.

The Scorecard

This is based on the first polls closing times in each state. If you could call each state as they closed this might be the result. I'm sure that the networks will delay calling some states until after 11PM even though it is clear who will win.



6PM


Indiana O 11
Kentucky M 8



7PM


Georgia M 15
South Carolina M 8
Vermont O 3


Dem 11 Rep 31


Ohio M 20
WV M 5




8PM


Conn O 8
Del O3
DC O 3
ME O 4
MD O 10
MA O 12
Mich O 19
NH O 4
NJ O 15
PA O 21
TN M 11


8:30


NC O 15
AR M 6



9:00

NY O 31
RI O 4
KS M4
LA M 9
MN O 10
NE M 3
WI O 10
AZ M 10
CO O 9
NM O 5
SD M 3
TX M 34
WY M 3


10:00


ND O 3
Id M 4
KS M 5
MT O 3
OR O 7

11:00

CA O 55
WA O 11
HI 4

1AM

AK M 3

The Phillies parade

Chase Utley will forever be remembered for his eloquence.


"World Champions! World Fucking Champions."



The fans erupted and cheered for several minutes.


I know how you feel pal. I'm still riding a Phillie's high.


This a pretty good sports year. The Phillies win the World Series and Penn State is still undefeated with a shot at the National Championship. Now if we can get a Eagles-Steelers matchup in the Super Bowl that would be sweet. And in my other favorite contact sport it looks like the Democrat's will win the White House.

Predictions

As I have done in the last few elections I will be asking you to predict the outcome on Tuesday. An added feature will be a poll on the sidebar. I will be posting my predictions in the 10th and 11th CD races and the Presidential contest over the next couple of days.

.

The Really Pissed Off Republican has already made his calls.

National Security

A guest post from our friend KAR.



The more that I think about the upcoming Presidential election the more I am convinced that it is one of the most important Presidential elections in my lifetime. There are many issues that get voters worked-up; abortion, education, healthcare, immigration reform, gun control the economy, but for me the number one issue is the security of the United States.



It’s not that I don’t find the other issues important, but the idea that we can somehow let our guard down vis-à-vis the terrorist threat posed by radical Islamists is, to me, very worrisome.
Since 9/11 pundits have droned on about the inevitability of another attack on American soil, and yet it hasn’t happened. This doesn’t mean that the radical Islamists aren’t trying; it means they have been thwarted. Their failure isn’t a result of “dumb luck” or “divine providence”; it is as a result of the actions taken by this administration to prevent attacks.



George Bush has endured shameless attacks from the left and the mainstream media almost from the time the dust settled after 9/11. These people have insisted that the common sense measures taken to protect this country have somehow diminished us, and transformed us into a fascist state.



These same people insist that we should deal with the terror threat as a law enforcement matter; meaning that we should investigate and apprehend only after another attack. The “Bush Doctrine” of preemptive action makes perfect sense in these matters; get the bad guys before they kill thousands of innocent Americans.


Those on the left seem more concerned that a terrorist has been read his “Miranda rights “than in stopping him from committing an act of terror. They wring their hands over interrogation techniques; they worry about the conditions at the detention centers. They act as if these individuals were “garden variety” criminals, they aren’t. These terrorists would gladly give their lives in an effort to kill as many of us as possible. They recruit women and children to carry out their murderous attacks, they need to be dealt with in a manner that ensures we, and our way of life, prevail.

Think about this when you cast your vote this November, ask yourself which party and which candidates have demonstrated that they understand the threat and will act proactively to protect this country.…the answer seems pretty clear to me.

Latest Pennsylvania Presidential polls

Muhlenberg (10/20-24/08, 601 LV) Obama 52% McCain 41%


SurveyUSA (10/21-22/08, 620 LV) Obama 53% McCain 41%

Strategic Vision (R) (10/20-22/08, 1200 LV) Obama 50% McCain 43%

Big Ten (10/19-22/08, 566 LV) Obama 52% McCain 42%


Quinnipiac (10/16-20/08, 1425 LV) Obama 53% McCain 40%


Allstate/National Journal (10/16-20/08, 412 RV) Obama 51% McCain 41%






The national map

Obama 375 McCain 157 Ties 6

Dem pickups (vs. 2004): CO FL IN IA MO NV NM NC OH VA

GOP pickups (vs. 2004): None

McCain hasn't led in any PA poll since April and is behind in every state that voted for Kerry in 2004. He needs to flip at least one state and the GOP camp thinks PA is his best shot. Mac will be tagging along with Sarah Palin for 3 stops in the Commonwealth Monday and Tuesday in Pottsville, Hershey and Shippensburg. This is the first election in my memory that both the Prez and VP candidates are appearing together this late. Let's call it the Geezer and Gidget tour. And Barry is not ignoring us with appearances scheduled in Pittsburgh Monday and Chester on Tuesday.

I have some anecdotal evidence that Obama will win this thing. I get my hair cut at an old fashion barber shop in Edwardsville who's majority of clientele are older gentleman. My barber is running his own poll of customers on the Presidential race and it's McCain 31 Obama 30. If McCain doesn't win an overwhelming majority of old white guys it's going to be a blowout.

Latest PA Presidential polls

Morning Call Tracking (10/11 - 10/15, 595 LV) Obama 53% McCain 37%

SurveyUSA (10/11 - 10/13, 516 LV) Obama 55% McCain 40%

Marist (10/05 - 10/08, 757 LV) Obama 53% McCain 41%

Strategic Vision (R) (10/05 - 10/07, 1200 LV) Obama 54% McCain 40%

Rasmussen (10/06 - 10/06, 700 LV) Obama 54% McCain 41%
.

Locally, the latest F&M poll in the 10th CD has McCain leading by only 46%-39% and Obama ahead in the 11th CD 47%-43%. If Mac is to win PA he needs big margins up here in the Alabama of the north.


The national map





Obama 349 McCain 171 Ties 18

.
The most interesting thing that has happened in the past week is that North Dakota, Montana and Georgia are back in play. If you look at where the candidates are campaigning today it tells you what both camps are thinking. Barry is on offense with events in Missouri and Mac is playing defense trying to hold on to North Carolina and Virginia. Sarah Palin is in Lancaster, PA trying to shore up the Amish vote and increase Viagra sales in the area.

The 2nd Presidential debate

Before I read or watch any post game reports on the debate between Barrack Obama and John McCain I want to give you a chance to chime in.


This format was supposed to be Mac's greatest strength but Barry held his own and that is all Obama had to do. I still say that this election will be a blowout.


Our last poll had Joe Biden winning the VP debate:


Joe Biden 42%

Sarah Palin 31%

Tina Fey 22%

Draw 4%

The Tina Fey vote just shows what a joke Palin is.

There is a new poll on the sidebar. Who won tonight's debate? Tell me why your guy did better than the other one in the comments.

New PA polls

F&M


Obama 48% McCain 43%


Quinnipiac


Obama 54% McCain 39%


Rasmussen


Obama 50% McCain 42%


Lycoming 10th CD only


McCain 46% Obama 37%


National

Obama 286 McCain 190 Ties 62

YouTube weekend

The Make or Break Moments in Presidential Campaign History

Staff Meeting

The Presidential race is about the economy not moose burgers.

From Political Animal:

In a speech in Elko, Nevada, this afternoon, Obama relayed the story about John McCain, in the midst of a financial meltdown, boasting that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong." Obama responded today, "But it sounds like he got a little carried away, because yesterday, John McCain actually said that if he's President, he'll take on the -- and I quote -- 'ol' boys network' in Washington. I am not making this up. This is someone who's been in Congress for 26 years -- who put seven of the most powerful Washington lobbyists in charge of his campaign -- and now he tells us that he's the one who will take on the ol' boy network. The ol' boy network? In the McCain campaign, that's called a staff meeting."


"Sold Us Out" Ad

The map 2008 President

Who's running for President?

With the media all agog over Sarah Palin it's hard to remember that the GOP nominee is John McCain. More information keeps dripping out and some of the more outrageous claims have been debunked by Newsweek.

False Internet claims and rumors fly about McCain's running mate.

But that left wing rag, The Wall Street Journal, calls her out her lie about stopping the Bridge to Nowhere.

Record Contradicts Palin's 'Bridge' Claims

Gov. Palin, who John McCain named as his running mate less than two weeks ago, quickly adopted a stump line bragging about her opposition to the pork-barrel project Sen. McCain routinely decries. But Gov. Palin's claim comes with a serious caveat. She endorsed the multimillion dollar project during her gubernatorial race in 2006. And while she did take part in stopping the project after it became a national scandal, she did not return the federal money. She just allocated it elsewhere.

Palin has attracted a lot of fans among my Republican friends including our old pal KAR:


John McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate is starting to look like a brilliant move. Democrats constantly harp about how they are the champions of diversity, yet a closer examination of the recent record reveals that republicans actually provide opportunity as opposed to just talking about it.

· First female Supreme Court Justice? Sandra Day O’Connor, appointed during the Reagan Administration.
· First African -American Secretary of State? Colin Powell, appointed during George W. Bush’s administration.
· First African -American Female Secretary of State? Condi Rice also appointed during the current republican administration.
· Second African -American Supreme Court Justice? Clarence Thomas, appointed during George H.W. Bush’s administration.

Democrats will tell you that none of these people actually count because they are conservative, that they actually setback the cause of women’s right and civil rights due to their conservative viewpoints…come again?

Apparently to democrats it doesn’t count unless you’re liberal, unless you buy into the whole victim mentality, achievement doesn’t matter, continuing the “struggle”, and establishing a mind set that allows the “struggle” to continue is of paramount importance.

Now we have Sarah Palin, a genuine human being if ever there was one. A working mother with 5 children, a “god-fearing”, gun toting, hunting and fishing, breath of fresh air. If this is the type of person Obama was referring to when he described rural folks as clinging to their guns and religion then please let’s get more of them running for office, it would be a refreshing change.

Palin must be a good choice, listen to the level of attacks against her by the democrats. Paul Begala questioned McCain’s sanity, nice of them to be so concerned, but Palin starts to look better every day. I thought it was amusing that Palin was criticized for not writing her acceptance speech and using a tele-prompter. Joe Biden knows a thing or two about using the words of others, and I’m quite sure both he & Obama have used tele-prompters.

I believe that a lot of American women are looking at Palin and thinking that they have a lot more in common with her than the likes of Hillary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi. Palin, I believe, has struck a chord with main stream women, women from both parties.

Look at the candidates, judge them by their actions, and decide for yourself which party has a proven record of inclusion. I believe that many people, including democrats, are looking at McCain/Palin and thinking that they are the ticket that represents change, genuine change.

And Dr. Joe has a series of posts backing her.

Barack Obama in Wilkes-Barre Friday?

I'm getting a handful of hits from this google search:

obama sept 5 wilkes-barre


It's probably nothing but if he is coming to town you heard it here first.


Update: I can't get confirmation of this but Obama will be in PA tomorrow.


Sen. Barack Obama will return to Pennsylvania tomorrow for two days of campaigning. On the same day that John McCain accepts the Republican nomination and gives his speech promising more of the same, Barack Obama will speak at Buchanan Park in Lancaster. The event is free and open to the public. He will outline his plans jump start our economy, provide middle class tax relief and get America moving in the right direction again.


Update 2: The TL is reporting Obama will be in the W-B area on Friday. Details to follow.

The Next President of the United States

And he came out swinging

History

Every Presidential nomination is a piece of history but this one stands out. For the first time someone who doesn't have the same skin pigmentation as me has been nominated for President. I think that is healthy and will exorcise some demons from our national psyche but it's not why I will vote for Barrack Obama.


Some of my friends make the case better than me.

Another Monkey:


I will not vote for Barack Obama on the basis of the color of his skin. I will not vote for him out of some sense of entitlement, or out of some belief that having him in the White House will somehow balance the scales of our national history of racial inequality...I will vote for Barack Obama because I believe he is the better candidate for the job. I will vote for Barack Obama because I believe he will be the better President, the President we need to help us begin our recovery from what will be an eight year long national nightmare.


Lu Lac:

Finally, someone said out loud that if you disagree with the opposition or find the war in Iraq wrong, that doesn’t mean you are unpatriotic...The Illinois Senator brought up the crucial point that the next President will appoint at least 3 new Justices on the Supreme Court. Keep in mind that the Supreme Court handed over the Presidency to George Bush in 2000, allowing him to steal the office.

The next Vice President of the United States

Joe Biden Speaks At The DNC

A few observations about the Democratric Convention

They skipped through the Roll Call of the states with Hillary asking to suspend the rules and make the nomination by acclimation. Nice touch for the party unity thing but I've been watching political conventions all my life and it's my favorite part. I love the corny speeches as the Governor of the state sings the praises of wheat or brags that the hometown team won the championship.


Where the hell was this guy in 2004? If he made a speech like this the last time he would be President. This is the best speech of the convention so far.

John Kerry Speaks at the DNC

Candidate McCain vs. Senator McCain.

"John McCain should finish the debate with himself."




My second favorite moment. Congressman Patrick Murphy is a Kings College grad and a vet of the 82nd Airborne who served in Iraq.

Patrick Murphy Speaking at DNC