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Wednesday, November 29, 2006
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Kirk Ross (via the Independent Weekly): "If you needed any evidence that we are at a moral, economic and political impasse over immigration, just review this month's walkout by more than 1,000 workers at Smithfield Packing's hog slaughtering plant in Tar Heel. It's the latest collision between an industry built on cheap labor, a dysfunctional immigration system, and homeland security policies drafted in a reality-proof bubble." Ouch.
Thanks to Ed Cone for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:58:03 PM 
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Washinton Post: "Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said today that he will not run for president in 2008, saying he plans to 'take a sabbatical from public life' and return to his Tennessee home and his professional roots as a doctor."
Thanks to TalkLeft for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:54:01 PM
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MSNBC: "The same embryonic stem cell bill that prompted President Bush's only veto is headed to his desk again, this time from Democrats who have it atop their agenda when they take control of Congress in January."
Thanks to SquareState.net for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:50:59 PM
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Our blog friend Andrew Tannenbaum takes a look at some of the current crop of 2008 presidential candidates. From the article, "When looking at 2008 presidential candidates, always keep two things in mind. First, every morning 100 U.S. senators look in the bathroom mirror and see a future president. Many run, but only two sitting senators have ever been elected president: Warren Harding (R-OH) in 1920 and Jack Kennedy (D-MA) in 1960. The reason is clear: senators have to vote thousands of times and opponents can always dredge up some vote to batter them over the head with. The problem is exacerbated by the intricacies of Senate procedures, where the key vote may be on the motion to table the motion to reconsider some proposal.
"Second, people who vote in Republican primaries are to the right of the Republican Party and way right of mainstream America and people who vote in Democratic primaries are the left of the Democratic Party and way left of mainstream America. As a consequence, candidates who might be able to win the general election are often disliked by primary voters as too centrist. Politicans respond by talking fairly extreme during primary season and then ignoring what they said in the Spring during the Fall. Count on it.
"Also worth nothing is that two years before the election, few people are tuned in and pollsters asking 'Who would you like to win the Democratic Party nomination' might as well be asking 'Please name some Democrat.' Ditto for the Republicans. In 2002, everyone was expecting Gore or Lieberman to be the Democratic nominee in 2004. Nobody saw the rise (and fall) of Howard Dean. As Harold Wilson famously remarked, 'In politics, a week is a long time.'"
"2008 pres"
5:47:07 PM
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Josh Marshall: "During the Vietnam war (and to an extent during all the Cold War proxy wars) the US always had a substantial anti-Communist constituency in the country. You can debate how large that constituency was and how great a constituency they were to support. But there's no questioning the fact that they existed, just as there was in pretty much all the Latin American insurgency/Cold War proxy wars in the 20th century. What's more, in the country's in question, those anti-Communist constituencies were often quite powerful -- certainly, in most cases, powerful out of proportion to their numbers.
"In Iraq, however, it's not clear we have anything remotely like that. True, there's a smattering of western-educated sophisticates and liberals who probably would like Iraq to be more like the US. But that's not to say that they necessarily like what we're doing in the country -- a mistaken leap of logic that routinely gets made. And among the major, powerful groups in the country we have at best, contingent and often momentary support from whomever we're not against. So, we have a marriage of convenience with the Shi'as while we're mauling the Sunnis, and vice versa. The Kurds are a significant exception to this general observation, but because of their relatively small slice of the population, their inherent antagonism toward most of the neighboring states and the fact that they're geographically limited to the north, I'm not sure it's an exception that changes the general truth."
Reuters: "Former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Wednesday Iraq had descended into civil war and urged world leaders to accept that 'reality'. Powell's remarks came ahead of a meeting between Bush and Iraqi prime minister Nuri al-Maliki in the Jordanian capital to discuss the security developments in Iraq. 'I would call it a civil war,' Powell told a business forum in the United Arab Emirates. 'I have been using it (civil war) because I like to face the reality,' added Powell."
Thanks to Ed Cone for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:39:23 PM
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Political Wire: "Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore (R) told ABC News that he's considering a 2008 presidential run. Gilmore also said that 'he might also seek a return to the governor's office in 2009 when Gov. Tim Kaine (D) is barred from seeking a consecutive term. A run for U.S. Senate doesn't appear likely with news earlier today that Sen. John Warner (R-VA) will probably seek re-election.'"
"2008 pres"
6:23:17 AM
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Captains Quarters: "Newt Gingrich has tried to position himself as the premiere conservative candidate for the 2008 Republican presidential primaries, a mission made easier by the list of front-runners already in the race. However, he may have taken a stumble yesterday when he posited that freedom of speech may have to be curtailed in order to win the war on terrorism."
"2008 pres"
6:20:51 AM
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The committee hoping to bring the 2008 Democratic National Convention to Denver has announced some corporate sponsorship of $11.5 million, according to the Denver Post. From the article, "Three Fortune 500 companies - citing civic support and not politics - have pledged at least $11.5 million in cash and in-kind contributions for Denver's bid to host the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Qwest and Comcast have pledged $5 million each, and Xcel Energy $1.5 million, said attorney Steve Farber, co-chairman of Denver's host committee. The goal is to raise $20 million from the Colorado business community as a part of the $80 million tab for the convention. It would be held at the Pepsi Center in August 2008 and attract an estimated 35,000 attendees to the city...
"A decision by the Democratic National Committee, headed by Howard Dean, is expected by early December. Dean has told the Denver host committee that his biggest fear about the city's bid was its ability to raise money. 'We're extremely close to the $20 million, but we're not stopping,' said Farber, a longtime political fundraiser. 'We're going to raise as much as we can from the greater Colorado business community.' Qwest and Comcast, the dominant communications companies in Colorado, on Tuesday confirmed their support for the Denver bid, as did Xcel, the state's largest electric and natural-gas utility...
"Ward said the $5 million would be cash and in-kind, but did not disclose specifics. He said Qwest would provide all telecommunications services, including wireless and video, for the convention. Comcast, the Philadelphia-based cable company with 800,000 subscribers in Colorado, has committed $5 million, said spokeswoman Cindy Parsons. 'A small portion will be cash; the larger portion would be support through the donation of Comcast products and services,' she said. Xcel Energy, based in Minneapolis, has made a $1.5 million pledge, said Roy Palmer, director of state public affairs in Colorado. Xcel is also contributing $1.5 million to the Republican National Convention, to be held at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., shortly after the Democratic event. The Xcel pledges are primarily for in-kind services such as office space and providing electric service, Palmer said...
"Coors Brewing Co. has also committed to fund the effort, said Farber, a founding partner of Brownstein, Hyatt & Farber. 'We have not decided yet what our involvement will be,' said Kabira Hatland, spokeswoman for Coors, the Golden-based subsidiary of Molson Coors Brewing Co. Other Colorado firms have offered at least $100,000 each, Farber said. One is TeleTech, a telecom services company based in Douglas County. 'It's an all-cash contribution,' said KC Higgins, a TeleTech spokeswoman. 'It's not politically motivated; it's community motivated.' Farber said the rest of the $60 million would come in three ways: $25 million would come from the federal government for security costs; $25 million from companies and donors elsewhere; and $10 million raised by officials in 10 Rocky Mountain and Western states from their local business communities. The Western states are seen as a key battleground for Democrats if they are to win the White House...
"Denver metro-area hotels are holding open 19,000 of 38,000 hotel rooms to accommodate the city's bid. The estimated economic impact in the region would be at least $160 million, about the economic benefit that Boston saw in 2004 when it hosted the Democratic National Convention, according to the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau."
"2008 pres"
6:01:58 AM
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© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/15/09; 12:14:25 PM.
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5:36:25 PM