Coyote Gulch

Monday, January 31, 2005

Iraqi Election
TalkLeft: "This is not to say I agree with all of the content in these posts and articles--I am just trying to encourage everyone to read both sides, before buying into the freedom and democracy or elections=success memes. Simply stated, we are still a long way from Kansas."
Josh Marshall: "Disasters aren't turned around in a day; but this was a good day. Nobody should be surprised that people show up in large numbers in a country where elections have never or only seldom happened; that happens all the time. But I'm not sure I can think of a similar instance when voting has occurred amidst such immediate and credible threats of violence."
Juan Cole has a great deal of election news today.
6:57:35 AM

State of the Union
President Bush will deliver his "State of the Union" address Wednesday night.
6:55:14 AM

2008 Presidential Election
Here's a recap of the contest for DNC chair from the Denver Post [January 31, 2005, "Race for DNC chief tilts Dean's way"]. From the article, "With just two weeks left before the Democratic Party picks a new chairman, former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb has failed to persuade his party's dispirited legions that he is the man to lead them to victory. As Webb and the other active candidates enter the homestretch of the party's selection process, the race now revolves around one man: former Vermont governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean."
Update: Colorado Pols: "The Associated Press is reporting that former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb has dropped out of the race for Democratic National Committee Chair and will throw his support behind Howard Dean."
Mayor Webb is throwing in with Howard Dean. Good idea.
6:38:55 AM

2004 Presidential Election
John Kerry was on NBC's "Meet the Press" yesterday trying to explain his loss in last November's election, according to the Denver Post [January 31, 2005, "Kerry: 9/11, war key to loss"]. From the article, "..the thrust of his comments was that the mistakes were at the margins, and that his campaign deserves credit for challenging a war president with large political advantages."
Update: Reuters: "A U.S. judge ruled on Monday that the Guantanamo military tribunals for terrorism suspects are unconstitutional." Thanks to Matthew Gross for the link.
6:30:42 AM

SpongeBob Squarepants
Bill Maier, child and family psychologist and vice-president and Psychologist in Residence at Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs defends James Dobson's remarks about SpongeBob as a media fabrication, in an opinion piece in today's Rocky Mountain News [January 31, 2005, "Speakout: Dobson's SpongeBob views distorted"]. He writes, "I was in the audience at the pre-inaugural dinner during which Dobson allegedly made his anti-SpongeBob remarks. Contrary to the media spin, Dobson didn't attack the Sponge. Instead, he warned that SpongeBob, Barney, Winnie the Pooh, and dozens of other popular children's characters may soon be used (presumably against their will) to promote the normalization of homosexuality in America's public schools. The characters are featured in a video and educational curriculum that is being distributed to 61,000 schools across the country by the We Are Family Foundation. Reportedly the curriculum and its accompanying teachers' guide will employ SpongeBob and his pals to encourage young children to accept homosexual behavior under the guise of promoting 'tolerance.' ... So what's going on here? Are gay activists really attempting to brainwash our kids under the banner of 'tolerance?' There is mounting evidence that they're doing exactly that."
6:23:10 AM

Social Security
Senator Salazar may support the President regarding cabinet nominations but that is not the case on the President's Social Security Plan, according to the Rocky Mountain News [January 31, 2005, "Salazar attacks Bush Social Security plan"]. From the article, "Repeating the position of many congressional Democrats girding for battle over the issue, Salazar - as always, wearing his cowboy hat - said the Social Security system may need adjustments, but that it's not in a state of crisis. Instead, Salazar said the domestic agenda should focus on fixing the nation's health care crisis and curtailing the ballooning federal deficit, which he says would grow even worse under Bush's Social Security plans. The Congressional Budget Office recently projected that this year's deficit would hit $368 billion, excluding war costs in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Here's the coverage from the Denver Post [January 31, 2005, "Salazar says Social Security plan would hurt Coloradans"].
Update: Josh Marshall: "We're going to try to bring you an annotated edition of the Republican strategy memo which we posted earlier today. And today or tomorrow we'll also be posting those 'privatization' flimflam quotes that readers helped us track down." Should be fun.
6:19:30 AM

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