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[AniHawk]

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/219735.php

Basically, "suspending the campaign" is a fancy way of saying McCain was taking a day to come to DC. Nothing more. It's puffed up to make him look like it's a big sacrifice to show up for a day.

The kind of sacrifice he made when he was a POW.

You know, for five and a half years, he wasn't able to visit DC.

 

[VanMardigan]

He will somehow take credit for it.

He should. The Dems were scared he'd take credit for it and got it done before he made it to DC.

 

[Jonm1010]

easy - Freddie and Fannie aren't responsible for the mess before us and only followed the free market's lead in reducing lending standards when it was already too late. both GSEs also have shit to do with securitization.

So Bush really wasnt foreseeing this and trying to fix it? Im really curious as all of it is fucking confusing!

 

[BenjaminBirdie]

He should. The Dems were scared he'd take credit for it and got it done before he made it to DC.

Heh. You cannot argue with that.

 

[Nabs]

Bill not only going nuts on the left, but the right as well

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDou01X5d28

:lol oh shit!!!

 

[CharlieDigital]

Pretty much. I've really checked my anger throughout all this despite moving to a new neighborhood in Jersey...

Where in Jersey?

<---East Windsor in Mercer

 

[Son of Godzilla]

So why hasn't like uh....... any alternative even been brought up to just bailing out these companies?

 

[WrathOfOtaibah]

I think it is still a good idea for Obama to show up.

McCain is banking on that the bailout bill will stagnate until early next week, allowing him to buy more time to counter the latest problems. However, it can either work well for him or blow up in his face. If its the former, McCain will ride that wave of "success" that he engineered. Obama will not get any of the credit anyway. If it is the latter, Obama can say, "Well, at least I showed up." McCain will then be seen as ducking the debates.

I think there is a good chance McCain will show up. McCain's staff knows its a risk to avoid the debates and if everything passes quickly, which it might, then McCain will look horrible if he is a no-show.

 

[Steve Youngblood]

Thought of the Day:

I'm still not sure how McCain suspended his campaign while his surrogates are still making the rounds on talk shows hewing to talking points and partisan attacks.

Easy. Since Obama was too busy playing politics to follow McCain's lead, somebody had to be out there speaking on behalf of McCain. McCain is competent enough to be able to tackle the financial crisis without needing to consult with an army of advisors and arrive at some wishy washy answers like his opponent.

 

[titiklabingapat]

Re: NC poll

Guys, keep in mind that these state polls do not reflect what McCain did yesterday, so celebrations to me are still a bit premature.

 

[gcubed]

Re: NC poll

Guys, keep in mind that these state polls do not reflect what McCain did yesterday, so celebrations to me are still a bit premature.

according to all the quick polls it was an overwhelmingly bad idea... so it could still go higher!!

 

[Tamanon]

I think it is still a good idea for Obama to show up.

McCain is banking on that the bailout bill will stagnate until early next week, allowing him to buy more time to counter the latest problems. However, it can either work well for him or blow up in his face. If its the former, McCain will ride that wave of "success" that he engineered. Obama will not get any of the credit anyway. If it is the latter, Obama can say, "Well, at least I showed up." McCain will then be seen as ducking the debates.

I think there is a good chance McCain will show up. McCain's staff knows its a risk to avoid the debates and if everything passes quickly, which it might, then McCain will look horrible if he is a no-show.

Obama's already in Washington. He just didn't call a press conference to "suspend his campaign" to do so

 

[StoOgE]

Even if Obama doesnt win NC, the fact that McCain has to defend it is good news. Less time and money for him to go after PA, MI, WI, OH, etc etc.

Hell, he is having to spend money in IN now. :lol

 

[The Librarian]

I think it is still a good idea for Obama to show up.

Obama is going to show up whether or not McCain decides to go.

 

[scorcho]

So Bush really wasnt foreseeing this and trying to fix it? Im really curious as all of it is fucking confusing!

A lot of people have called out the moral hazard in the Fed implicitly guaranteeing Freddie and Fannie before the crisis, but that has little to do with what is behind the credit crunch. When that argument is made now, it's done to take focus off Greenspan's ineptness and the previous 20+ years of Republican-sponsored deregulation.

 

[AniHawk]

If the bill gets passed and McCain doesn't show up, that would pretty much be the end of McCain's campaign forever.

 

[PhoenixDark]

Obama sighting

Marty Kady catches the nominee on his way into the Hart Senate Office Building.

"I think we need to get something done, and we need to get something done for Main Street as well as Wall Street," he says.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/

 

[Tamanon]

OK, the White House parking lot is hilarious, completely filled with black SUVs. And Jeannie Ohm has her hair in pigtails today, guess someone told her to brush her hair.:lol

 

[gkryhewy]

If the bill gets passed and McCain doesn't show up, that would pretty much be the end of McCain's campaign forever.

What a twist!

 

[scorcho]

Easy. Since Obama was too busy playing politics to follow McCain's lead, somebody had to be out there speaking on behalf of McCain. McCain is competent enough to be able to tackle the financial crisis without needing to consult with an army of advisors and arrive at some wishy washy answers like his opponent.

I wish all of us had the fortitude to point to a scapegoat and claim presidential powers that don't exist to solve a crisis that McCain didn't believe existed a week prior.

 

[kaching]

Heh. You cannot argue with that.

Really? It seemed like they were making steady progress this week and given that it was already considered a naturally very urgent issue to resolve ASAP, I don't see how it's clear at all that they could have gone any faster to head off McCain's impending grandstanding.

 

[speculawyer]

If the bill gets passed and McCain doesn't show up, that would pretty much be the end of McCain's campaign forever.

Hey, there were 5 years when he couldn't show up for a debate no matter how much he wanted to.

 

[AniHawk]

Obama sighting

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/

Did he act like a fuckwad suspend his campaign?

 

[AniHawk]

So why hasn't like uh....... any alternative even been brought up to just bailing out these companies?

Because it would lead to another Great Depression!

 

[grandjedi6]

Wait, Cynthia McKinney and Babar wants to take over the debate if Obama and McCain can't do it? Who the hell wants to give McKinney national television time? She'd last for about 5 seconds before she'd go off on how Obama has a phobia of black people or 9-11 was an inside job. Sheesh.

 

[Keylime]

Hey, there were 5 years when he couldn't show up for a debate no matter how much he wanted to.

Did you know that John McCain killed 20 members of the Navy, and injured a 100 more barely survived a plane explosion while he was in the Navy?

He's truly a hero among us.

 

[The Lamonster]

Wait, Cynthia McKinney and Babar wants to take over the debate if Obama and McCain can't do it? Who the hell wants to give McKinney national television time? She'd last for about 5 seconds before she'd go off on how Obama has a phobia of black people or 9-11 was an inside job. Sheesh.

Why wouldn't Obama show up? Obama is going to show up. He doesn't cut and run.

 

[PhoenixDark]

Roger Simon on the potential risk and rewards of McCain's actions. not bad
http://www.politico.com/rogersimon/

I disagree though: if a deal is made before Friday night, McCain doesn't "win" by looking like he influenced things. He hasn't done anything but walk around congress having his picture taken. IF a deal is made before friday night and he still doesn't show up for the debates, this race might be over.

 

[Xisiqomelir]

Wait, Cynthia McKinney and Babar wants to take over the debate if Obama and McCain can't do it? Who the hell wants to give McKinney national television time? She'd last for about 5 seconds before she'd go off on how Obama has a phobia of black people or 9-11 was an inside job. Sheesh.

I don't see why this should happen, it's not like they were invited. If JSA bails, I'm pretty sure we'll see the "Bams debates himself" comedy routine, which you and I have correctly predicted will definitely seal the deal for the Dems.

 

[kaching]

I wish all of us had the fortitude to point to a scapegoat and claim presidential powers that don't exist to solve a crisis that McCain didn't believe existed a week prior.

Look at it this way - he's setting the bar incredibly high for his fake presidential self. If he can get this crisis under control in under 24 hours then surely he can capture Osama Bin Laden in the remaining 40 days before the election. He knows how to do it, after all.

Hell, why do we even need to elect him if he can get these things done without even being in the Oval Office?

 

[Cauliflower of Love]

Someone take the Wildcard Bitches gif from sunny in philadephia and put mccains head on it.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Heh. McCain has bailed from debates before.

With new polls showing his campaign dead in the water among California Republicans, Arizona Sen. John McCain has pulled out of a long-scheduled debate with Texas Gov. George Bush, set for Thursday in Los Angeles.

McCain campaign officials tried desperately yesterday to put the best face on their withdrawal, even as a new Field Poll showed Bush far ahead among likely Republican voters in the winner-take-all race for the state's 162 GOP delegates. [...]

The bait and switch on the debate left the Arizona senator -- whose favorite campaign line is "I'll always tell you the truth'' -- wide open to blistering criticism from his rivals.

"Clearly, this is more double-talk from the McCain campaign,'' said Alixe Mattingly, a spokeswoman for Bush. "Pulling out of this debate at the last minute is an indication that they're pulling out of California, where McCain's antagonistic message clearly isn't working.''

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/artic.../MN62687.DTL&hw=mccain+opinsky&sn=001&sc=1000

From the 2000 race. (Posted on Kos.)

 

[mckmas8808]

Critical Point:



http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0908/Nope_nothing_campaignrelated_here.html?showall

Today is just waaaay too much. Hopium overload!

 

[PhoenixDark]

Obama, McCain both arrive at the White House ahead of their meeting with President Bush and other congressional leaders.

The bipartisan group is set to sit down at 4 pm ET to discuss the economic bailout bill.

 

[bob_arctor]

Where in Jersey?

<---East Windsor in Mercer

Bloomfield. Great little suburb that's not too suburby. Best thing is the bus to NYC picks me up and drops me off literally right in front of my house.

 

[BenjaminBirdie]

Really? It seemed like they were making steady progress this week and given that it was already considered a naturally very urgent issue to resolve ASAP, I don't see how it's clear at all that they could have gone any faster to head off McCain's impending grandstanding.

(Just kiddin'.)

 

[Trurl]

Am I the only one who is starting to fear that if Obama shows up by himself before a plan is passed that it could blow up in his face? As absurd and transparent as McCain's actions are, Obama could look VERY bad if McCain is "hard at work" and Obama is on national television in a format that will likely feel very bizarre.

The funniest thing from today is that McCain took the time to speak at Clinton's forum today. This really needs to be driven as a talking point to show that McCain is selective about what he doesn't have time for.

 

[speculawyer]

AP is running with the 'defending seeing Russia as foreign policy' story.

Do you think the GOP is regretting their mock-the-media strategy now? :lol

Palin defends Alaska-Russia foreign policy remark
By AMY WESTFELDT, Associated Press Writer 24 minutes ago

NEW YORK - Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin defended her remark that the close proximity of Russia to her home state of Alaska gives her foreign policy experience, explaining in a CBS interview airing Thursday that "we have trade missions back and forth."

Palin has never visited Russia and until last year the 44-year-old Alaska governor had never traveled outside North America. She also had never met a foreign leader until her trip this week to New York. In the CBS interview, she did not offer any examples of having been involved in any negotiations with the Russians.

Palin's foreign policy experience came up when she gave her first major interview, on Sept. 11 to ABC News. Asked what insight she had gained from living so close to Russia, she said: "They're our next-door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska."

The comment met with derision from Palin's critics and was turned into a punch line for a "Saturday Night Live" skit featuring actress Tina Fey. Appearing as Palin, she proclaimed, "I can see Russia from my house!"

In the interview with CBS News anchor Katie Couric, Palin said: "It's funny that a comment like that was, kind of made to ... I don't know, you know? Reporters ..."

Couric said, "Mock?"

"Yeah," Palin said, "mocked, I guess that's the word, yeah."

When Couric asked how Alaska's closeness to Russia enhanced her foreign policy experience, Palin said, "Well, it certainly does because our ... our next-door neighbors are foreign countries." Alaska shares a border with Canada.

Palin didn't answer directly when Couric inquired about whether she had been involved in any negotiations with the Russians.

"We have trade missions back and forth," she replied. As she continued, Palin brought up Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

"It's very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where — where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. It is — from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to ... to our state," she said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080925/ap_on_el_pr/palin


This has gone from excitement about watching a close campaign to the excitement of watching a car crash.

 

[scorcho]

When did O'Donnell get a hosting gig on MSNBC? It's like putting a sack of flour at a desk while partisan hacks from the right and left hew to their scripts and peddle their shit unmolested.

 

[Xisiqomelir]

Am I the only one who is starting to fear that if Obama shows up by himself before a plan is passed that it could blow up in his face? As absurd and transparent as McCain's actions are, Obama could look VERY bad if McCain is "hard at work" and Obama is on national television in a format that will likely feel very bizarre.

Obama getting uninterrupted national airtime cannot be bad for Obama's electoral prospects. I leave it to the reader as an exercise to work out why this must always be true.

 

[chaostrophy]

Anyone read Adam Cadre's (writer who's worked on interactive fiction) thoughts on the election so far? They're very well written and worth reading.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Given the multiple plane crashes, the explosion, the torture, and the 4x cancer, don't we really have to wonder if God is trying to kill McCain?

 

[speculawyer]

Given the multiple plane crashes, the explosion, the torture, and the 4x cancer, don't we really have to wonder if God is trying to kill McCain?

That's how tough he is . . . even God can't kill McCain!

 

[The Lamonster]

When did O'Donnell get a hosting gig on MSNBC? It's like putting a sack of flour at a desk while partisan hacks from the right and left hew to their scripts and peddle their shit unmolested.

:lol

If you hate it that much, turn off the TV.

 

[Ponn]

Look at it this way - he's setting the bar incredibly high for his fake presidential self. If he can get this crisis under control in under 24 hours then surely he can capture Osama Bin Laden in the remaining 40 days before the election. He knows how to do it, after all.

Hell, why do we even need to elect him if he can get these things done without even being in the Oval Office?

Niiiiice. Fix the economy, finish the war and end terroism in 40 days. Then he could just export the job of being president of the U.S. to China and chill with some beers for the next 4 years.

 

[Hellsing321]

AP is running with the 'defending seeing Russia as foreign policy' story.

Do you think the GOP is regretting their mock-the-media strategy now? :lol



http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080925/ap_on_el_pr/palin

Has anyone pointed out that it's unconstitutional for any state to enter into an agreement or negotiation with a foreign country unless allowed by Congress, so I sure as hell hope she didn't enter into any negotiations with Russia.

 

[scorcho]

McCain:

Paulson:

:lol

If you hate it that much, turn off the TV.

First day watching MSNBC after a week of BBC and CNN International. LET ME DECOMPRESS DAMN IT.

 

[Slurpy]

When Couric asked how Alaska's closeness to Russia enhanced her foreign policy experience, Palin said, "Well, it certainly does because our ... our next-door neighbors are foreign countries." Alaska shares a border with Canada.

Palin didn't answer directly when Couric inquired about whether she had been involved in any negotiations with the Russians.

"We have trade missions back and forth," she replied. As she continued, Palin brought up Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

"It's very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where — where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. It is — from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to ... to our state," she said.

W..w..wow.

 

[LiveWire]

Did you know that John McCain killed 20 members of the Navy, and injured a 100 more barely survived a plane explosion while he was in the Navy?

He's truly a hero among us.

OK, I don't follow this political thing very much. I'm not the biggest fan of McCain based on what I know of him and have seen and heard from him directly, but in reading up on the USS Forrestal fire I don't see how any of it was his fault?

 

[Keylime]

OK, I don't follow this political thing very much. I'm not the biggest fan of McCain based on what I know of him and have seen and heard from him directly, but in reading up on the USS Forrestal fire I don't see how any of it was his fault?

It wasn't. A bad joke to my meltdown earlier.