May 09, 2007

5/9: All Stick And No Carrot

Daily Kos' mcjoan promotes a planned VoteVets.org ad buy targeting GOP Sens. Susan Collins (ME), John Sununu (NH), John Warner (VA), and Norm Coleman (MN), as well as GOP Reps. Mary Bono (CA), Phil English (PA), Randy Kuhl (NY), Jim Walsh (NY), Heather Wilson (NM), Jo Ann Emerson (MO), Tim Johnson (IL), Mike Rogers (MI), Fred Upton (MI), and Mike Castle (DE). The ads feature three ret. generals (including Wesley Clark) asking Congress to "protect our fighting men and women." However compelling the ads may be, one has to wonder how effective they'll be influencing the GOPers targeted. After all, it's not like the netroots would target any of the above officeholders any less ferociously if they voted with Dems on the war.

GIULIANI: A Thin Line Between "Pro-Choice" And "Abortion Rights Advocate"

Rudy Giuliani found few defenders among conservatives reacting to news he gave money to Planned Parenthood through out the '90s:

• RedState's Hunter Baker: "Rudy's Done. It's over. ... For conservatives, a donation to Planned Parenthood is just slightly more excusable than a donation to the KKK. There's a big difference between being ambiguous and giving money to the biggest abortion providers in the nation."
• Townhall's Matt Lewis: "If you knew someone who: Supported taxpayer funding of abortion, Said the Republican Party should 'get beyond issues like (abortion),' Gave money to Planned Parenthood, And spoke at a NARAL 'Champions of Choice' Lunch. You wouldn't say he was Pro-Choice. ... You'd say he was an Abortion Rights Advocate.
• Hot Air's Allahpundit: "The only thing left would be to find out he was allowed to do the honors himself a few times during some PP clinic tour back when he was mayor. No doubt Romney's people are looking into that as we speak."
• Iowa Voice: "However you slice it, this does put yet another major dent in Rudy's chances. You simply can't go around saying that you hate abortions and be taken seriously when you're donating money to them."
• The Right Angle's Nathanael Blake: "
• NY Sun's Ryan Sager: "The fact is you really can't claim to abhor abortion and give money to Planned Parenthood at the same time. The truth seems to be that Rudy Giuliani doesn't particularly care about abortion one way or the other - that he sees it as a major distraction from the issues he wants to be talking about."

The story dominated Giuliani's appearance on Laura Ingraham's show 5/8. The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez summarizes: "The interview was way too short, so it ended with Giuliani asking Ingraham if she would ask him about the war on terror next time he's on, saying that's what citizens most frequently ask him about. ... I'm surprised he doesn't get himself crash-coursed on this so he is on top of it and sounds like it. He uses Deroy's adoption up/abortion down argument but he doesn't know the numbers. It helps a candidate, persuasion-wise, to know his own record." SC's Daily Chaser didn't think mush of Giuliani's performance either: "Sounds like Rudy doesn't quite know what Reagan's Mexico City policy is."

GOP FIELD: Not Enough Yankee Fans In This Sample For Rudy

Pollster.com's Mark Blumenthal seconds Hotline On Call explanation for the wide discrepancy between Gallup (showing Rudy Giuliani up 14% on John McCain) and CNN (Giuliani up by just 2%). On Call noted Gallup sampled all adults while CNN screened for "self-described registered voters." However, Blumenthal notes that other recent similarly screened polls showed results closer to Gallup's numbers than CNN's.

Blumenthal concludes: "[M]ost Republicans nationally have only begun to consider the candidates, much less who they will support in 2008. So their answers to pollsters are showing great variation. When voters start to make up their minds -- next year -- these results will show more consistency.

In non-sceintific polling, Right Wing News asked readers who they would "most like to go to a ballgame with." Results include:

Fred Thompson 46%
Rudy Giuliani 19%
Newt Gingrich 10%
Duncan Hunter 8%
Mitt Romney 5%

MCCAIN: Is He Teddy Or Ronnie?

MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) hosted a Power Line Forum on John McCain titled "Conservative Case for McCain." From Pawlenty: "The times are calling out one of the finest public leaders in the modern history of our country - John McCain. Like Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan, he powerfully expresses conservative principles in a common sense way. John McCain's unwavering courage, candor, character, and demonstrated willingness to take visionary risks to do what is right are all in the tradition of these great Republicans."

Most Power Line readers that responded respectfully disagreed with Pawlenty including: "No disrespect to you Governor, it is said you are a solid conservative and I respect you for that. But it isn't true that McCain is the last of his kind. There's still Lindsey Graham and probably a few other Republican Senators masquerading as conservatives who can be counted on to try to stuff a gag in our mouths, take our guns away, derail conservative judicial appointments, cut deals with Democrats that undermine Republicans, and curry favor with liberal reporters by criticizing other Republicans when they try to advance conservative policies.

ROMNEY: Is There A Better Foe To Have In A GOP Primary?

Townhall's Hugh Hewitt directs readers to a YouTube of Al Sharpton telling an audience: "As for the one Mormon running for office, those who really believe in God will defeat him anyway, so don't worry, that's a temporary situation." Hewitt comments: "Anyone caught up with Harry Reid or Don Imus for their reactions yet?"

THOMPSON: From The Halls Of Montezuma ...

Fred Thompson's latest Paul Harvey radio commentary (promoted at The Corner) notes that the Marines first "protracted foreign war" with the Barbary pirates "lasted approximately 14 years" and wonders if they "were ever described as a 'quagmire' or 'lost.'" Thompson concludes: "Listening to the messages of al Qaeda's leaders, you understand that they see their old defeats in very personal and contemporary terms. They are in a "long war" against us, even if we don't know it. And they're committed to winning it."

DEM FIELD: You've Got Mail

In a post titled "The Presidential Contenders: Who Is Responsive to People Without Lobbyists?" Singled Out author Bella DePaulo identifies which campaigns responded to identical packages she sent in making the case "for the importance of single voters." Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, Barack Obama, and Bill Richardson all received the plea in early April.

DePaulo recounts: "Not even two weeks later, I had a response from Obama for America. 'Dear Bella,' it began, "Thank you for your suggestion for Barack Obama." Then a page of suggestions for how to help the campaign. The response from John Edwards was even quicker, dated the same day that my package arrived. My address was hand-written on the envelope. Inside was a brief, personalized, and upbeat letter, beginning with 'Dear Bella, Thank you so much for your book, Singled Out. It was very kind of you to think of me.' So far, no word from the others."

EDWARDS: A Climate Patriot

Blogging at The Huffington Post Democracy for America ED Tom Hughes thanks John Edwards for being the first '08er to present his plan to stop global warming at DFA. Hughes stresses, the post is not an endorsement but does recount "the core" of Edwards plan as asking "Americans to be patriotic about something other then war" and then points readers to Edwards official site.

IA's Bleeding Heartland links to a YouTube of Edwards ad featuring Iowans speaking against the war.

OBAMA: It's Not Easy Being Green

On closer inspection Barack Obama's CAFE standard proposals are not exciting more wonky elements of the lefty blogosphere. The Washington Note's Steve Clemons does praise Obama's promise to help Auto manufacturers with retiree health care costs, but also notes that "the auto sector has decided to heavily lean green."

TNR's Michael Crowley picks up on NY Timesreporting that Obama's 40 mpg goal is not that far off from Pres. Bush's 34 mpg target and asks, "how substantial is the policy difference?" Colleague Bradford Plummersuggests Bush would be far more "flexible" than Obama on the issue, but also recommends Chris Dodd (50 mpg) as the gold standard on fuel-economy standards.

IRAQ: September Or Bust

The netroots are not buying Washington Postreports that significant numbers of GOPers may break with Pres. Bush 9/07 on Iraq. Reactions include:

• Daily Kos' Kagro X: "Prediction: In September, the "debate" will be, "Do the long-term trends show enough progress to 'stay the course,' or even call for yet more troops to really 'nail it down' in Iraq? Democrats: No! Republicans: Yes!"
• MyDD's Jonathan Singer: "The military, it seems from The Post's reporting, seems to be saying two things: They need until September to assess whether or not their Iraq tactics are working but they also need until next April to decide whether or not to continue those tactics. If this is indeed correct, if the military is intent on continuing this current set of tactics for another year regardless of the assessment made this fall, September's reevaluation promised by the military and by Republicans in Congress is effectively meaningless."
• Atrios: "The WaPo is crystallizing September as the supposed Iraq drop dead date for Bush. But it won't be. A few more Republicans will be peeled off, but that's it. The major Republican presidential candidates will still be telling people that if we leave Iraq the terra ists will be hanging out at their local Applebees. Bush is going to cling to his pet war until the end. Movement conservatives will set up yet another stupid web site about victory. Bill Kristol and the rest of the conservative pundits will still be on board. It ain't gonna magically end in September."

A quick survey of RedState suggests the GOP base will not be pushing their leader to abandon Iraq. Mark Kilmer writes: "Brace yourselves for a summer surrender party. ... The House Democratic leadership will brief their rank-and-file Demlings today on the new version of Murtha-Pelosi, the House Democrat plan for Iraq, which would fund the war through July, at which time they could declare failure and cut off funding. ... Has someone convinced them that a few narrow victories last November is an expression of the will of the American people to surrender and run home? I'm sorry if this sounds impolite, but it is war time."

Also at RedSate, Charles Bird identifies "two vitally important messages that Redstaters should communicate to the rest of the country: the civil war has subsided and al Qaeda is causing a significant percentage of the murder and mayhem." More Bird: "It is becoming clear to me that we are not only in an Information War against militant Islamists such as al Qaeda, we are in an Information War against those Democrats who would rather flee from a central front in this Long War than make a stand."

The Corner's Byron York, however, is a bit more circumspect: "It's an article of faith in Republican circles that Congress should not impose deadlines on the U.S. troop presence in Iraq. But should deadlines be off limits in the Iraq debate? Maybe at this point, a deadline for the Iraqi government wouldn't be a bad thing. ... Yes, it's true that a deadline would simply tell the enemy how long he has to wait before the U.S. leaves. But it would have the same effect on the Iraqi government, too, and that might be a good thing."

IRAQ II: Issue Convergence

Conservatives seized on two GWOT related stories 5/8: the arrest of six Ft. Dix plotters, and KS Gov. Kathleen Sibelius (D) disaster relief comments.

On the Ft. Dix six, The Corner's Mark Krikorian draws the some lessons including: "They were doing jobs Americans won't do - no, I don't mean plotting to kill our soldiers. The three Kosovar illegal-alien brothers were roofers, precisely the kind of job that amnesty-boosters tell us we need immigrants for. ... If Tony Snow's information is correct and "there is no evidence they received direction from international foreign terrorist organizations," then the three illegal aliens among the plotters almost certainly would have passed whatever perfunctory security screening the Bush/McCain/Kennedy amnesty would require."

Also at The Corner, Cliff May adds: "This could be a very positive sign. It could mean that we've eliminated many of the most skilled and experienced terrorists, many of the most qualified terrorist trainers and international ring masters - that we've either killed them or imprisoned them at Guantanamo or at some secret prison somewhere. ... good for Bush and the CIA and the FBI and others all of us criticize."

On Sibelius, The Right Angle's Michelle Oddis reports she "hasn't even asked for" National Guard help yet. Oddis blogs: "The Dems and their "amen chorus" in the media should check facts before blaming the Iraq War for leaving American disaster victims unaided.

IRAQ III: Less Fear-Mongering On Habeas Wanted

On news from MyDD's Matt Stoller that "there's an outside shot that House Democrats on the Armed Services Committee will put a restoration of habeas corpus into the Defense Department Authorization Bill" netroots jumped to call freshmen cmte. members and Dem leadership. Stoller blogs: "Now's the time to let them know that this is something that we elected them to get done. There's a bit of fear that this vote could put freshmen members at risk, though I don't really know why as the data on this isn't compelling and the attack ads just didn't work in 2006. ... This is an especially important message to deliver to freshmen members who have the moral credibility of having been in elected in 2006 in the teeth of Republican fear-mongering."

Mcjoan at Daily Kos' posts The Center for Constitutional Rights talking points on the issue:

• 1. Habeas corpus is a core principle of the Western legal system. Since 1215, habeas corpus has been a major mechanism in ensuring that executive power, whether exercised by a king or a president, is checked.
• 2. Our nation's founders deemed the right of habeas corpus so important that they enshrined it into the constitution.
• 3. Habeas corpus can be suspended by Congress only in times of rebellion or invasion, and neither is currently taking place.
• 4. Habeas corpus is a core democratic principle. If we are to continue to think of the United States as a free and democratic country, it is very important that we hold on to our Constitutional principles.
• 5. The Bush administration's "alternative procedure" - the Combatant Status Review Tribunal - is no substitute for habeas corpus. In the unfair and deeply flawed CSRT process, coerced evidence and secret evidence are allowed, and detainees cannot have an attorney represent them.
• 6. The detainees, many of whom are guilty of only being in the wrong place at the wrong time, have lost years of their lives due to the actions of the Bush administration. They must be given the right to challenge their detention so that these wrongs can begin to be righted.
• 7. People and countries around the world view the United States as lawless. We can begin to change that by restoring the right of habeas corpus to the almost 400 detainees at Guantanamo.

BLOGGERS VS. BELTWAY: Doesn't Anybody Like This Guy?

The Nation's Ari Berman promotes his latest article on Hillary Clinton pollster Mark Penn at The Huffington Post: "Penn is not yet a household name, but perhaps he should be. Inside Hillaryland, he has elaborately managed the centrist image Hillary has cultivated in the Senate. ... Yet Penn is no ordinary pollster. Beyond his connections to the Clintons, he not only polls for America's biggest companies but also runs one of the world's premier PR agencies. ... This creates a dilemma for Hillary: Penn represents many of the interests whose influence candidate Clinton--in an attempt to appeal to an increasingly populist Democratic electorate--has vowed to curtail."

Matthew Yglesias blogs: "It's one thing to be recruiting people from the corporate world, but Penn is right now both advising Clinton and the CEO of a firm being bad vast sums of money to do PR for all kinds of corporations. ... It doesn't take much of a genius to reach the conclusion that ceteris paribus candidates from left-of-center political parties can become more popular by being less left-wing, and Penn seems to have no particular sense of when this might be a bad idea. He also seems unusually averse to "big ideas" and ambition even for a pollster, which is saying something."

Ezra Klein adds: "I've been rather stunned by how poor Penn's reputation is among other pollsters, acquaintances, and former employees. ... As one fairly representative, prominent Democratic pollster complained, 'the profiles all say Penn is acknowledged to be brilliant even by his enemies. That's so grossly incorrect. Is he a brilliant analyst? Holy s**t no. He's known more for being able to make the data fit his preexisting views than bring brilliant. But nobody knows what sort of value Penn adds, because he specializes in giving advice to powerful people and companies. Take Microsoft. If not for Mark Penn, would they really just be another run of the mill software company?'"

PROSECUTOR PURGE: Bingo!

TPM's Josh Marshall links to Kansas City Starreports Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO) staffers asked the Bush administration in '05 to remove US Attorney Todd Graves due to his wife's involvement in a controversial 'fee office' patronage scheme in Missouri. Marshall doesn't buy the official explanation and males the case Graves was fired to make way for alleged minority voting rights suppressor US Attorney Bradley Schlozman, who will testify before Congress 5/15. Marshall blogs: "Bingo! I think we have our 9th fired US Attorney -- and one replaced in short order by one of the Bush DOJ's prime 'vote fraud' scammers."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Letters From Mom

Following Barack Obama's MySpace incident, The American Princess shares her doubts on candidate run MySpace pages:

The big mistake comes in thinking that a Presidential campaign can run a MySpace page effectively. Suddenly, everyones inboxes will be full of carefully crafted press statements about appropriations, floor votes, positions on tax reform, and the ever popular "referrals to the Ways and Means committees." For hipsters in tune with MySpace, its like getting a letter from your parents in your comments section telling you how adorable you are even though you're constantly on the verge of killing yourself in your effort to be as street as Jared Leto.

LEST WE FORGET: The Case For Timetables

Reacting news Lost will close out in 2010 Ross Douthat blogs:

Imagine how much better The Sopranos would be if David Chase had been kept to four or five seasons, or The X-Files if Chris Carter had stopped churning out episodes in 1998 or so. ... As a general rule of thumb, I think the better the show, the more it needs a cut-off date. Three's Company could have run forever; Seinfeld should have ended a season or two earlier than it did. Ditto the long-running Beverly Hills 90210 versus its far superior heir, The O.C., which could have left on a George Costanza-style high note by calling it quits after its near-perfect first season. ... would My So-Called Life be remembered as fondly as it is if we'd had to watch Angela Davis and Jordan Catalano get together, break up, get back together, break up - and then, worst of all, go off to the same college?

Posted by Conn Carroll at May 9, 2007 12:30 PM