Coyote Gulch

Friday, July 28, 2006

Republican conundrum
Jesus' General: "Dear Rep. Reynolds,

"You're in a hard spot. As chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, you're supposed to be proud of your party and its accomplishments in Congress. Your colleagues expect you to be out there in front touting all the good work the Republican caucus has accomplished, things like turning a woman's final moments into a circus, working closely with lobbyists to bring free-market principles to the legislative process, and ensuring that trivial matters like the rebuilding of hurricane-ravaged cities don't get in the way of the important work of passing laws against flag burning.

"Unfortunately, you are also in the midst of a re-election campaign, and the public is more likely to view your party's accomplishments as evidence that you're corrupt and insane than to see them as reasons for sending you back to Washington. I imagine that's why you've tried to distance yourself from your party by not using the word 'Republican' or the party logo anywhere on your campaign web site."
"2008 pres"
7:10:29 AM

Global warming or hoax?
New West: "A prominent American scientist studying the possible effects of climate change in Antarctica has written a strongly-worded opinion piece in the New York Times telling skeptics to stop using his name and that of other researchers to prop up their claims that global warming is a hoax. Peter Doran, an associate professor of earth and environmental sciences at the University of Illinois-Chicago, is the latest scientist to say that climate change deniers are misusing the conclusions of his data to try and create a false impression of the science. Writing in The New York Times Thursday in a piece titled "Cold, Hard Facts", Mr. Doran expressed dismay that skeptics have prolifically circulated the work of his team to suggest the Earth, overall, may actually be cooling rather than warming. While his study documented localized cooling in one region of the Antarctic Continent over four years from 1996-2000, he said the skeptics seized upon it and created a legend of doubt that has only grown in magnitude."
"2008 pres"
7:07:31 AM

Iraq
Daily Kos: "In a daring attempt to protect themselves from the Bush Republican War Machine the Iraqi Parliment overwhelmingly voted to reclassify all Iraqi citizens as embryos. 'Perhaps now Bush will stop blowing us [...] up' said spokesman Haseem Marqular. This move also required Iraq's infant government to remove age restrictions on things like driving, drinking and voting but as local newspaper publisher Marqular Haseem said, 'Not very many Iraqis did all three of those things at the same time anyway.'"
"2008 pres"
7:02:01 AM

Dem convention in Denver?

The coalition hoping to land the 2008 Democratic National Convention for Denver has hired a veteran organizer, Debbie Willhite, to help with the effort, according to the Denver Post. From the article, "The group bidding to bring the 2008 Democratic National Convention to Denver has hired a veteran Washington, D.C., organizer as executive director - a tangible sign of the city's commitment to landing the meeting...

"Willhite ran the 1992 convention for the Democrats as well as the 1997 Summit of the Eight in Denver. She has been working on Democratic campaigns going back to President Jimmy Carter's re-election bid...

"Willhite, who is now a partner in the Washington-based political strategy firm FieldWorks, was a field director for Bill Clinton's campaign for governor, and she helped run both of his presidential inaugurations. Her hiring brings a major Washington connection to Denver's bid. It also reinforces the seriousness of Denver's host committee."

Here's the coverage from the Rocky Mountain News. They write, "She [Willhite] said a Denver convention would help the Democratic Party advance its successful strategy of attracting independent voters in the Mountain West to win back the White House. 'I think the No. 1 purpose of the convention is to be a launching pad for the presidential nominee,' Willhite said. 'Denver serves that purpose in a number of ways. The most important way is that it stretches the electoral map and shows that the Democrats are reaching out to the Rocky Mountain West.' She said that gives Denver an edge over the other two competitors for the Democratic convention - New York and Minneapolis-St. Paul."
"2008 pres"
6:43:02 AM