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An exclusive interview with Hillary Clinton reveals her shocking secret ambition: “You think I give a flying F$&# about the White House?? THIS is what I really want!”

With all the hype about McCain being the only qualified GOP candidate you don’t hear much about former Governor Huckabee who is still in the race. That is till he starts winning states over McCain.

Over at GOP central they possibly manipulated this election with the Romney drop out but they never considered the Huckabee chip in this election. In the game of political chess the GOP was praying that Huckabee would follow Romney’s lead and just drop out of the process thus ensuring a unified GOP political machine. This is how the big boys play chess and sometimes the moves you make are missed when the player your are protecting is way over on the other side of the chess board.

Over at the Washington Post they have this on the current political state of the GOP. Somebody is moving the pieces on the board over at the GOP and it isn’t just John McCain…

Karl Rove, President Bush’s former senior political adviser, did his best to shoot down Huckabee’s chances. Rove said on CBS that it is far-fetched to presume that McCain will say or do something to doom his candidacy.

Huckabee “said he could win, provided that there were mistakes made by his opponent, and that some of these bound or pledged delegates would change their mind. Well, even if they change their mind, they’re bound or pledged to vote for the candidate who won their primary,” Rove said. “I find it very unlikely, completely implausible, that Governor Huckabee could win 83 percent of the delegates.”

As Bush’s adviser, Rove ran a brutal campaign against McCain as Bush and the senator dueled for the GOP nomination in 2000. But this week, Rove donated money to the McCain campaign. - Washington Post

Karl Rove should have been put in jail with the CIA identity agent leak scandal but that is another story for another day. If he is the background of the GOP then that is the type of folks they want in the White House once more. Make no mistake about it Karl Rove has his hand in this election process and the tactics he will use against any opponent will be far worse than you have ever seen.

Not to detract from the political record of John McCain, I’m wondering if he sent Karl Roves check back? Common sense would dictate that you do not want anything to do with the Bush crew of more lies, more deception, more smoke and mirrors and more screwing over of America. That isn’t the Straight Talk Express of McCain but I’m betting the farm that the check cleared and McCain is dirty with it.

Is it just me or is it just politics where a man could stab you in the back eight years ago but then he believes in your message today? Push poll and call you a coward and having a child unrecognized by the father eight years ago but he’s your guy for President in 2008? It’s up to the Huckabee Campaign to pick up on this and run with it but then again he’s running on a shoe string budget.

Any connection to any campaign by Karl Rove is a death sentence simply because everyone running for President is running against what Bush and Karl Rove did to America. Common sense dictates that you don’t touch the same burner on the stove once you have burned your fingers. You just don’t do it ever again.

That all being said, Obama or Clinton have an EZ Pass to the White House. Save this post, this was the undoing of John McCain in this Presidential election. That makes this Democrat happy.

Papamoka

Originally posted at Papamoka Straight Talk

Feel free to link to or borrow this post…

With Mitt Romney announcing the end of his presidential bid, it looks like John McCain, the 71 year old senator from Arizona, will be the likely Republican presidential nominee. (Sure, Huckabee or Ron Paul could surge ahead, but it’s not probable that either will unseat McCain from his frontrunner status at this point in the race.)

More than 20 states still have primaries to hold, and for Democrats the focus must now shift to who can best beat McCain- Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama.

McCain is not embraced by all members of the Republican party equally, and by some not at all, so there is reason to suspect that in a general election some Republicans could jump fences and vote for the Democratic candidate. Even McCain seems to recognize this fact.

“It is my sincere hope that even if you believe I have occasionally erred in my reasoning as a fellow conservative, you will still allow that I have, in many ways important to all of us, maintained the record of a conservative….

I am acutely aware that I cannot succeed in that endeavor, nor can our party prevail over the challenge we will face … without the support of dedicated conservatives,” McCain told the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Thursday at an annual meeting in Washington.

Now facing a candidate not fully embraced by his party, the Democrats need to settle on the candidate best positioned to scrape off votes from unhappy Republicans and moderate independents.

Democrats have been giddy with their candidates up to now, seeming to bask in their historic choices for president, but the time for giddiness is over now. Regardless of who wins the Democratic nomination, they will be a historic candidate-either because of race or gender. No longer can Democrats look at these two candidates as barrier breakers, but instead must look to see who could beat McCain. You might think that either of the Democratic contenders would beat a 71 year old opponent, but the truth is not so simple, even with McCain’s own troubles within his party.

To think that Republicans would cross the aisle to vote for Hillary in a general election is an exercise in wishful thinking. For many in the GOP, a vote for the Ebola virus would be preferable to a vote for Hillary, meaning that in a general election, the contest would be too close to call with Republican voters backing McCain and Democrats backing Clinton. Independent voters in that match-up have seemed to prefer McCain, but who knows? Frankly, I don’t want another president selected by the Supreme Court if the race is so close. We all know how well that has worked out for America.

But when you match up McCain and Obama, it’s a different story altogether. Polls show him having a much better chance of taking the presidency against McCain than Clinton has. Consider that in the Super Tuesday primaries, Obama bested Clinton among independent voters by huge margins- 37 points in Missouri, 39 points in New Mexico and 10 points in Arizona and New Hampshire. In red states on Super Tuesday, Obama got more votes than even some of the Republican contenders. Clearly, Obama has crossover power that Clinton does not. And in the general election, this is what really matters. In many other national polls, Obama beats McCain everytime. Clinton does not, and where she does, the margin is too slim for comfort.

A McCain presidency wouldn’t likely differ too much from the current Bush presidency, especially considering that McCain is a “maverick” who seems to know what he knows. He shoots from the hip and is known to have a less than presidential temperament. Oddly though, a Hillary presidency isn’t going to look much different than Bush either. She is too entrenched in the mire of Washington politics to even consider looking outside the box (so to speak) for new, innovative ways of solving problems. And as I’ve said before, Hillary’s still stuck in the “I” of politics, as opposed to the “We” message of Obama.

It seems clear that Obama represents the best chance for America to turn away from the insidious politics that have so divided this country. He offers the best opportunity to reform the way our government represents our citizens. He seems to understand that being liberal and progressive isn’t synonymous with “Big Brother” politics. And he certainly doesn’t have a sense of entitlement to the office. Obama appeals to people of all parties (or lack of a party) where Clinton does not.

And for what it is worth, I think Obama really could offer an opportunity to put away some of the partisan rancor in our government by turning the page on American political dynasties. A fresh start, a fresh face…this is what America really needs.

Those who have yet to cast a primary vote need to strongly consider whether they want a close race that could as easily return the White House to “business as usual politics” with an entrenched and entitlement driven Democrat or another 4 years of Bushlike myopic Republican control, or whether they are really ready to give America a chance to redeem herself in her own eyes and the eyes of the world.

Who best to beat McCain? Barack Obama.

Americans of both parties have said they aren’t happy with the direction of the country. A vote for McCain or Clinton will assure that this direction does not change. The only hope for change is through an Obama presidency, supported by average Americans of all political stripes. It is within reach folks. Stick out your hand and grab it.

In the world of post 9/11 we have lived in the shadow of fear and the never ending threat of possible future terrorist attacks. As a parent of five daughters I am fearful of the future they will have to live in if this mindset continues. Our world has changed but the possibilities that they should have as American’s should never be less than what I have had.

America has never been about what we should be afraid of as much as it is has always been about what we can all do together. We as a people will not prosper if we are forever looking ahead of us with a sense of dread and danger with every step. Our world has never been perfect and yet the future is only bright if we look at the future as a new adventure with unknown surprises that together we can all overcome. We can not overcome our fears of the probabilities if the messengers of our government are burning the olive branches offered as kindling to heat the cold halls of our government. Our nation was not built on fear but on determination to secure a brighter and better future for the next generation to come.

We need change and we need inspiration from our leaders. Separation of the people to achieve political objectives is over and the time for new ideas, new dreams, and hope is upon us. Together we can make a difference. “Yes we can” is an American right of passage and yes we can make America a better place together.

This little video from Black Eyed Peas is simply inspirational and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Yes We Can!

Papamoka

Originally posted at Papamoka Straight Talk

Feel free to link to or borrow this post…

Tomorrow I get to vote. I actually get to vote in an election that actually may effect the outcome of the American political process.

Twenty-some years ago I was in college when Harold Washington won the Democrat mayoral primary to become mayor of Chicago. Well, at least that’s what I was told as many exuberant Chicagoans ran through the dorms announcing that the first African-American had become mayor of Chicago.

I began to think about this recently as we are on the brink of such a similar historic event. I lived in a Cleveland, Ohio suburb when people like Dennis Kucinich and Carl Stokes were mayors of that town. At the time Harold Washington’s coronation as King of Chicago didn’t seem like such a big deal to me, an outsider to the windy city. When I finally read the news and discovered that his winning of the primary was only the first step - he had to win the general election I continued to be confused about this thing they called Chicago politics.

Politics is a funny thing. People think that they understand the way politics works until it doesn’t work like that any more. Hillary Clinton was able to pull off a surprising victory over Barack Obama in the New Hampshire primary by simply shedding a tear. On the other hand four years ago Howard Dean won the New Hampshire primary and lost that nomination on the same night with his historic scream of exuberance. Confidence is a good thing but overconfidence soon becomes arrogance. And excitement soon becomes perceived as lunacy.

Perception influences more votes than any other aspect of a candidate. Perception is a powerful tool that can be used to lead a nation. In a perfect world there is a correlation between perception and reality. However, we don’t live in a perfect world. George W Bush and Karl Rove taught us that, if we didn’t know it before.

Harold Washington was an inspiration to many people who admired the struggle against adversity to achieve political power. However, Harold Washington also died of a heart attack that was most likely induced by the cocaine that was found in his bloodstream at the time of his death. People can be both an inspiration and a poor role model. Thomas Jefferson and George Washington advocated freedom and liberty while they were both slave owners. Being perfect is a very high ideal.

When we look for our next leader, and as I said I must cast my vote tomorrow, we can only know what we perceive a candidate to be. We are always short of the total picture of any candidate. The Chicagoans that voted for Harold Washington never knew that he had a cocaine habit. Instead, the perception that elected Mayor Washington was the perception that he understood the voters and he would fix the problems that the voters needed to be fixed. Because he was an African-American it was assumed that he had lived a life that a typical African American had lived, whether that was true or not. And, some people who where not African American feared that anyone who had experienced these inequalities in society was bound to take advantage of the power of the office of mayor to take retribution. Obviously this is a sad state of affairs when one group believes that there was a group of people that had been mistreated and a representative of that group might use power to seek retribution. Both the knowledge of mistreatment and the assumption of retribution are sad commentaries on our society.

Slowly our society is learning that people don’t necessarily take retribution when they win power. And, we are also learning that people we once thought that we could trust not to abuse political power surprising do abuse their power, like the current administration. How can we protect ourselves from people that would abuse their power? After all, this is the aspect that most of us fear the most about our government. We look for hints when we see these politicians up close and in person. We suspect politicians when they manipulate the facts on the campaign trail, because this type of manipulation makes us wonder what else they might manipulate.

So, I have determined that I will cast my vote for Barack Obama tomorrow. When I see Hillary shedding a tear the day before a vote and miraculously winning the New Hampshire primary it seems a bit too manipulative. When I see her do the same thing this weekend right before the big Super Tuesday primary it seems just a bit too unlikely to not be planned. But, this is not the sole incidence of Hillary’s continued perception of manipulation. I saw her take the easy way out when she voted to attack Iraq back in 2003. I saw her craft her presentation in such a way that she carefully doesn’t commit to anything in an effort not to lose any potential voters. She mirrors the same manipulative behaviour that I have despised in the Bush administration from the beginning. She may be on the left side of the political aisle, but she seems to be on the same side of the obfuscation partition. I really don’t want to have another deceptive presidency. I don’t think that any of us do.

Of course it really is hard to know if Barack is just better at hiding his manipulation. After all, many people still believe that George W Bush is as honest as the day is long. Currently that number of people might be down to 17% of the population. But, 17% of 300 million is still a lot of people - 51 million. And 51 million people can still influence a lot of power in this country, especially if there are dollars attached to those people. So, regardless of whether Barack is able to manipulate me as a voter I am willing to cast my vote his way and hope. I hope that we will finally have a president that believes what he says and will bring America together to create a more perfect union and move us forward.

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Don’t forget what Stephen Colbert said, “Reality has a well-known liberal bias.”

Cross Posted @ Bring It On, tblog, Blogger and BlogSpirit

Reflection

Not since the days of Ronald Reagan have you seen or heard of so many people that will cross party politics to vote for the opposing political parties candidate. Even on talk radio there are many die hard Republicans that are running for the Democrat side of the possible ticket if McCain wins the Republican nomination for President. What’s intriguing is that they would vote for Barack Obama over McCain if that was the choice they had to face at the voting booth.

Republican’s are suffering from the same malaise today that Democrat’s faced in the campaign of Jimmy Carter versus Ronald Reagan. Our entire nation was in a state of depression over the economic status in our lives and the message the Republican Party of hope, unity, and an America that could be proud once more steam rolled with Democrat voters its nominee Ronald Reagan into the White House.

Barack Obama is not stealing from the Reagan playbook for this election and does not need too. He has the message of change and a better America for all of our people that you can actually believe when he tells you that change is coming to America. That is something Hillary or the rest of the Republican’s running in the race for President of the United States that can not converse to the people. Words are easy to speak but the speaker or candidate actually has to believe that change is possible.

Over at Newsweek they have this on the flood of Republican’s for Obama…

Barack + GOP = ‘Obamacans’
Some prominent Republicans have caught Obama fever.
By Richard Wolffe Newsweek Web Exclusive
Feb 1, 2008 Updated: 7:02 p.m. ET Feb 1, 2008

Susan Eisenhower is more than just another disappointed Republican. She is also Ike’s granddaughter and a dedicated member of the party who has urged her fellow Republicans in the past to stick with the GOP. But now Eisenhower, who runs an international consulting firm, is endorsing Barack Obama. She has no plans to officially leave the Republican Party. But in Eisenhower’s view, Obama is the only candidate who can build a national consensus on the issues most important to her—energy, global warming, an aging population and America’s standing in the world.“Barack Obama will really be in a singular position to attract moderate Republicans,” she told NEWSWEEK. “I wanted to do what many people did for my grandfather in 1952. He was hugely aided in his quest for the presidency by Democrats for Eisenhower. There’s a long and fine tradition of crossover voters.”

Eisenhower is one of a small but symbolically powerful group of what Obama recently called “Obamacans”—disaffected Republicans who have drifted away from their party just as Eisenhower Democrats did and, more recently, Reagan Democrats in the 1980s. They include lifelong Republican Tricia Moseley, a former staffer for the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, the one-time segregationist from South Carolina. Now a high-school teacher, Moseley says she was attracted to Obama’s positions on education and the economy.

Former GOP congressman Joe Scarborough, who anchors MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” says many conservative friends—including Bush officials and evangelical Christians—sent him enthusiastic e-mails after seeing Obama’s post-election speeches in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. “He doesn’t attack Republicans, he doesn’t attack whites and he never seems to draw these dividing lines that Bill Clinton [does],” Scarborough told NEWSWEEK. - Newsweek

One thing is certain and that is the fact that Barack Obama does not need to attack anyone from any political party when our nation is faced with so many problems. Selling the possibility of hope and change is not easily spoken if you are just not believable. A distinct advantage Obama has over Hillary Clinton.

With supper dooper Tuesday election day coming up, the lot in life of each of the candidates in both parties is up in the air. There is no clear winner in either party but there is a sense that our nation needs a different captain at the helm. With the vote to come and any decision for any candidate we need to think not of ourselves but who can serve the nation best. Who can make the biggest difference that crosses all political party lines. Hope is not just a Democrat or Republican state of mind or thought, it is an American belief in a brighter tomorrow.

Hillary Clinton has been too locked up in the political machine of her husband and national politics that she would not recognize her own self of twenty years ago in the mirror. How she can speak of change and believe the words coming out of her own mouth is unbelievable. Her experience and politics are far too damaged by the legacy she and her husband left behind them that makes her words not worthy of even one vote. Maybe the experience she is trying to sell is something we have seen before. Former President Clinton is not a uniting force of America and the more he speaks on her behalf, the more people look to Obama as the beacon of hope. Party politics and affiliation aside.

Anyone but Hillary is the strongest message coming from the people. I’m voting Obama and for hope. You should too!

Papamoka

Originally posted at Papamoka Straight Talk

Feel free to link to this post or borrow it…

When you think of a political ideology like liberalism then one of the front runners in that thought process is Move On. I like to think of them as my loony friends on the left simply because I love being a moderate liberal. I’m not an extremist but I believe in my heart many of the same thoughts that Move On proposes as they seek a progressive liberal agenda. They give a sense of direction for the political junkies amongst us and in that direction millions more that are not members or affiliated with Move On tend to lean on the fence post and listen, read, and form our own opinion.

Move On is endosing Barack Obama and over at the New York Times they have this little piece on it…

February 1, 2008, 12:11 pm
MoveOn Endorses Obama
By Jeff Zeleny

LOS ANGELES – Senator Barack Obama has won the endorsement today from the membership of MoveOn.

In a vote of the group’s members, Mr. Obama outpaced Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton 70 percent to 30 percent. The political action committee of MoveOn.org has 3.2 million members across the country, including 1.7 million members who live in the 22 states with Democratic primaries or caucuses on Tuesday.

“Our members’ endorsement of Senator Obama is a clear call for a new America at this critical moment in history,” said Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn. He added, “The enormity of the challenges require someone who knows how to inspire millions to get involved to change the direction of our country, and someone who will be willing to change business as usual in Washington.” - New York Times

After watching the love fest debate of Obama and Clinton on CNN in California several differences emerged between the two candidates. Politicians are sneaky and vague for the most part but one thing I noticed was the use of two simple words. When and If. Two little words but when they are used in a political debate they can portray a great difference between the candidates talking about the issues. Those two words play to the back of your mind and depending on the topic and how they are used can have a direct effect on how you subconsciously perceive the discussion.

In the debate I found it ironic that in many of the replies that Senator Clinton gave were started with “If” which opens up the question of doubt as to her ability to achieve the high goals she has set for her platform and candidacy. So many “If’s” seem to have to happen “If” she can deliver the promises she proposes in her universal health care plan. That in itself wreaks of a true politician telling you what you would like to have happen in our nation “If” we can overcome all the hurdles she spoke of. It almost seems that she is afraid to cross the secret line of politicians in Washington? You tell me?

On the other side of the cookies and milk debate was Barack Obama using the word “When” in many of his responses. Along with that word he used the word “We” which seemed more appropriate when you are talking about the political issues that will effect 300 million plus Americans. “When” we negotiate with the pharmaceutical industry for lower prescription costs and “When” we pass health coverage is just more believable. Backing it up with an insistence on CSPAN coverage of the actual debate on health care for all takes the closed doors discussion of screwing America out of the equation.

In the end the debate was not a debate in the sense where one politician calls another on the carpet on any issue. The questions were all softball lobs and played into both of the candidates best interests.

It’s all politics but I have to go with the majority of Move On members and believe that Obama is the path to a new America and the force for change in all of our lives.

Hillary can be very articulate in her answers to any question but she proved last night during the CNN debate that she can circle the question directly asked with the best of them and never answer the question asked. I tend to think that as things go, “If” Senator Clinton were the party nominee, and “If” she were to become President, then we could be faced with two many “If’s” and not enough “When” or “We“.

Papamoka

Feel free to link to or borrow this post…

Originally posted at Papamoka Straight Talk

Popular vote aside, Obama won Nevada by one delegate to the Democrat convention. Popular vote aside, the message of Obama and hope lives on in Nevada. Hillary will get all the headlines but the truth of the matter is that the real decision of the voters is based on the delegates to the convention so Hillary Clinton’s win is not really a win. Somebody call Bill Clinton and tell him that he is about to get slapped upside the head again by the wife.

The Tsunami wave of Obama is coming to fruition all across America and it can not be stopped. His message is clear and his points are not about looking at the past but at the future of America and the outlying folks in Nevada voted for a new future in our nation. That future is full of hope and of brighter days to come that are not filled with isolationist ideology and war mongering. Out in suburbs of the big cities of Nevada they saw the difference and voted for change. Out in the suburbs is the key words there. Regular people, not millionaires, not people even making a hundred thousand dollars a year. Obama has the heart beat of the people at the bottom of the economy that always look to hope and that is someone running for President that believes that we can be saved from the plight that is corporate America’s intolerance of us. Nevada voted for hope and in that message Obama won Nevada at the convention with more delegates than Hillary Clinton.

Over at the Washington Post they have this breakdown of the Nevada election results…

Clinton and Romney Win in Nevada
By Chris Cillizza
washingtonpost.com staff writer

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton beat Sen. Barack Obama in the popular vote in the Nevada Democratic caucuses today, while former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney prevailed earlier in the Nevada Republican caucuses.

With 97 percent of the vote counted, Clinton led with 51 percent to 45 percent for Obama (Ill.). Former senator John Edwards trailed far behind with four percent. However, although Clinton captured the popular vote, Obama edged her out for delegates at stake, taking 13 to her 12, according to an Associated Presss analysis.

“I guess this is how the West was won,” Clinton told cheering supporters in Las Vegas. The popular victory was her second straight, coming after an upset win in the New Hampshire primary.

The disparity between the raw vote total and the delegate apportionment is centered on the fact that Obama beat Clinton in the state’s sparsely-populated northern reaches and more rural areas — a statewide showing that left him with a narrow delegate victory if not a popular majority.

“We came from over 25 points behind to win more national convention delegates than Hillary Clinton because we performed well all across the state, including rural areas where Democrats have traditionally struggled,” said Obama spokesman Bill Burton. -Washington Post

Some people wonder if America is ready for an African American President and I wonder if we are ready for another eight years of another Clinton disgrace series of real legislation subdued by controversy from the first Clinton Presidency revisited. When the Clinton’s claim in deceptive words to be the first African American President I shudder at the disgrace that they propose on African Amrican’s. As a white man I can not see through the eyes of any African American and I can not say that racism is dead in America because it is not. Racism is born out of misunderstanding and hate passed down from generation to generation. Even in New England where the bluest of blue states are it is ignorance rather than knowledge that prevails. If you were blind and listened to the messages of all of the candidates not knowing if one is Black or the other is a Woman you would see the true difference.

A good friend of mine is slowly going blind, my heart felt prayers are with him and his family every single night. I beg God above that he would have his vision back because he is not of the opinion that America should be divided racially but united simply as Americans. And yet in his heart and soul I know him as a friend that would give his vision and life if he could erase the ignorance that is race relations between all people that are the melting pot of America. His heart is genuine and his soul pure of thought.

I would give my own life to find hope in America and I am not living the life of any African American, and I am not going blind.

Vision is sometimes found in the heart and not your eyes. Hope is never in the form of a question, it is a matter of belief. That is the question you need to ask when you cast your vote in the primaries.

Papamoka