Fuck Deborah Clark. The Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections has proven herself incompetent this election cycle. Unless two hour wait times to vote are your idea of a job well done. In that case, you must be a Republican with voter suppression on his mind, because under no other objective evaluation could what is currently going on at at the three (THREE!) sites for early voting in Pinellas County be called a success.
Nothing funnier than watching a bunch of down-ballot candidates flub their video promos. Actually, this is a pretty funny-effective video (disclosure: one of the Vote Local consultants, Larry Biddle, is the partner of Creative Loafing editor David Warner.)
One of Tampa Bay’s more colorful characters gives us his assessment of the presidential election today. And you can express yourself, as well, by taking our unscientific survey after the jump.
Randy Constan, guitarist, inventor and club habitué better known locally at “Peter Pan”
He’s voting for: Barack Obama
Why? “First, as a Christian, I’m disgusted with the overall Republican trend to legislate personal morality. I believe we should treat each other as equals and abstain from judging each other as much as we’re able. My ‘family values’ consist of helping those in need, funding education for children and medical care for everyone. And I want someone who sees such a philosophy as being our ‘brother’s keeper,’ rather than a collection of ‘entitlements’ to be continually cut.”
What he would say to an McCain supporter: “I’d ask whether they want another president who believes he’s always right on all things, who won’t consider other views. It has been said that for a president to admit error is political suicide. Yet Obama seems to possess both the vision to see the best course of action, the willingness to listen to all sides and the humility and courage to change course when a better path is revealed.”
Local candidate who most interests him: Hillsborough County Commission candidate Kevin Beckner, who is challenging incumbent Brian Blair. “I’m tired of the rampant overdevelopment of our natural wetlands, and to me, Blair seems much too well supported by land developers.”
Ron Howard wants Barack Obama to win so badly that he was willing to complete sacrifice his dignity and make the following video. Way to go, Opie. Happy Halloween everyone!
Found this hilarious video over on Daily Kos. It seems everyone’s favorite pipes-man never made it into the building.
However, You know who did make it in? The Kos post was soon updated with this tid-bit:
Update (9:43AM): In the comments, Trix noted that two-thirds of the crowd were bused in school students:
That’s right: The McCain camp rented a crowd from the local school district. Inspiring politics.
I’m talking politics and the last week of the campaign this morning at 10 on Studio 10 on WTSP 10 Connects. (That’s a whole lotta 10’s.) Join me, Holley and Jerome from the comfort of your own living room or at work.
Our Tampa Bay voter today brings us a perspective from outside of the two major parties. You can join in by voting in our unscientific survey after the jump.
Dwight Lawton, Veterans for Peace activist
He’s voting for: Ralph Nader
Why? “Nader represents the only voice on the dangers of the military-industrial complex.”
What he would say to a McCain or Obama supporter: “Nader is the only person who is unaffected by the corporate lobbyists. He will not accept corporate contributions.”
Local candidates who most interests him: “Norman Roche for Pinellas County Commissioner and Janet Clark for Pinellas County School Board.”
Barack Obama aired his half-hour “Obama Infomercial” as the candidate called it on last night’s Daily Show. (Time called it a “mini-convention six days before the election.”) The production leaned heavily on tug-at-the-heartstrings profiles of “real Americans” and some very specific policy proposals. In case you missed it:
I couldn’t hold out until Election Day to cast my ballot, as much as I wanted to, but the thought of trying to juggle my journalistic duties with my constitutional responsibility to vote got to be a bit overwhelming. So, I thought, I would pop down the street to the West Tampa Library and vote early.
I’ll jump to the conclusion: this paper ballot stuff sucks and I long for the days of the touch-screen machine.
I lit out of the office at about 11:30 a.m. to vote, and after circling the block once found a parking spot. The entire street on the north side of the library was full, as was the parking lot across the street, in back of the post office. I got in line with what looked like about 60-70 people ahead of me, as Obama volunteers handed out literature and a poll watcher came by with bottles of water. The poll watcher made a crack about not having any Scotch to go with the water, and I damned near left the line to go get one. Would have taken the edge off the cold and the wait ahead.
They let people inside in groups of 15, and each group took about 15-20 minutes to cycle through, so I spent about 45 minutes in line outside and another 15 or so inside until I got to the woman manning the voting computer. “Your picture ID, please,” she said. I had to repeat to her my current address, then read a placard that threatened me with jail if I was bullshitting her about anything, then sign my name on an electronic keypad instead of the old paper record. What a pain in the ass. There was an elderly lady next to me who, I swear, like tried to sign the electronic keypad 30 or 40 times without it registering. She apparently couldn’t get it right or muster enough strength to have the pen make an impression. What a nightmare.
After I did all that song and dance, the poll worker hit a button and my paper ballot started spitting out of the printer. This printing process took about 30 seconds or so, as opposed to the digital cards that touch-screens used to have, which took almost no time to program. I then was handed my two paper ballots inside of a “privacy folder” and was directed to a voting booth. The black felt-tip marker at the booth worked, just barely, and I started marking the two pages.
Now, here is where I screwed up.
John McCain is down the street from our West Tampa news factory, at the University of Tampa. But as William March of the Tampa Tribune points out in his blog, it is damned unusual to see the candidate have a no-press, no-public event so close to the election:
One thing some of them can’t figure out is why, just six days before the election, McCain is holding an event in Tampa that’s closed to most of the media and the public.
“I don’t know. I’ve been asking the same question,” said Pinellas County Republican Party Chairman Tony DiMatteo.
Hillsborough County Commissioner Mark Sharpe, McCain’s county co-chairman, emphasized that national security concerns could affect voter decisions.
“It’s a very important issue at a time when people are beginning to focus” on the election, he said.
As to why McCain would hold a closed event, he said, “McCain doesn’t always do things that appear on their face to be purely political—he just does what seems right.”
Deb Clark’s decision to limit early voting in Pinellas County to just three locations has resulted in long lines and prompted widespread criticism, a partisan call for a grand jury investigation, and now the installation of “wait clocks” showing people waiting in hour-plus lines just how long it will take to discharge their democratic duties.
Jack Killingsworth, a Democrat running against Clark, sent out this news release today:
It’s yet another Internet fake.
This photo has been making the e-mail circuit, purporting to show Sarah Palin’s daughter, Piper, utilizing her middle finger in a way very familiar to us grown-ups:
Fake Piper Palin photo
The real photograph is from the state of Alaska’s website and shows lil’ Piper holding up two fingers in a V or victory symbol, or a threat that she is going to use her knowledge of Moe Howard’s signature move to poke her little brother’s eyes out. Either way, she is NOT flipping him off:
Real photo from state of Alaska official site
Here is a blow-up of the digits:
As if there weren’t enough reasons already to hate reality television shows, let’s consider the case of Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Shot to (what passes today for) stardom on Survivor: Australian Outback in 2001, she obviously was thrust into the public realm long before the important parts of her 
brain had a chance to fully develop (she does, nonetheless, have a degree from Boston College).
It was a short hop, skip and a jump from there to fame as one of the four yentas on The View, the sacrificial winger for Joy Behar, Rosie O’Donnell and others to use as a human punching bag. It was sort of cute and harmless entertainment.
But on Sunday, Hasselbeck took her shilling for the right-wing of the Republican Party to the next level, showing up in Tampa to introduce Sarah Palin to a crowd of like-minded wingbots:
Clearly cuing up the next phase of her evolution, errr God-directed intelligent design, Hasselbeck is riding the flag pin thing to the next level — it’s all linked in to sexism! — as shown in this transcript from her View co-host Barbara Walters’ radio show on Sirius satellite, a chat that included NY Post gossipeuse Cindy Adams:
Today’s installment looks at the views of a financial expert. You can take part, too, by clicking on the unscientific survey after the jump.
Jay Dolan, a financial adviser in St. Petersburg
He’s voting for: Undecided. “I am a bad stereotype of a flip flopper
Why? “Fiscally speaking I am a big McCain supporter. I think the country needs to significantly reduce spending but nobody has the guts to do it. At the same time, however, he wants to cut taxes, which I don’t think we can really afford to do… at least not until we prove that we can actually cut spending. He also lost significant ground with me by choosing Sarah Palin, which I believe was a 100% political move.”
“I think Obama instills a sense of confidence McCain does not have and that is something our country has been missing for some time now. The amount of spending he wants to put into social programs scares me considerably. However, I think the ideological change in power might help the country move forward through our current crisis.
Local candidate who most interests him: “I must admit I have not paid much attention to the local races as most of my time lately has been spent talking to very nervous clients.”
Palm Beach, Fl. Fifth-grader and aspiring reporter Damon Weaver interviews Joe Biden, asking the veep candidate what it is that a VP actually does. He likes Biden’s answer enough to declare them officially “homeboys.”
It’s official, from the Obama campaign:
Jimmy Buffett to Headline Last Chance for Change Rally & Concert for Barack Obama
in Tampa Nov. 2nd
Free Concert Information at FL.BarackObama.comTAMPA – Two days before Election Day, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 2, the legendary Jimmy Buffett will hold a free concert in Tampa to support Barack Obama’s Campaign for Change.
A Florida resident, Buffett will perform for thousands of Florida voters – for free – to urge them to cast their votes for Barack Obama on Tuesday, November 4. Obama’s Campaign for Change encourages voters to cast their ballots during Early Voting, which ends Saturday, November 1 in most counties.
Tickets can only be obtained by visiting one of the Campaign for Change Early Vote information tables at locations listed below and are limited to two per person. Visit FL.BarackObama.com or call 1-877-2FL-OBAMA for more information.
Ticket drop details after the jump.
The Miami Herald has an interesting post about the relationship between the McCain campaign, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and the state Republican Party. It had grown quite testy for several months, but now Crist is planning on filming a commercial for McCain.
As to the difficult relationship, the Herald reports:
McCain campaign director Rick Davis had Florida in his “safe column.” That changed last month, just as the relationship between McCain Florida director Arlene DiBenigno and RPOF chair Jim Greer appeared to get frosty. Some Republicans say the third floor of the party’s George Bush building is divided – state Republicans on one side and McCain folks on the other. And there’s not much chatting going on between the two. Lots of closed-door meetings. Little trust. Sometimes state and county Republicans find out about McCain events by reading it in the papers or on the blogs.
Today’s LA Times mentions that Greer/Crist shot down a plan to have the party pay for a flier linking Barack Obama to terrorist Bill Ayers. Some Republicans say it’s true. Others aren’t sure. Others remember a flier that featured Middle East terrorists.
The New Republic has also weighed in with a piece about how McCain let Florida slip away:
If John McCain were on a clear path to victory, there would be no campaign here at all. Yet there was McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin, battling on Sunday across the state’s crucial central corridor in Tampa and Kissimmee. Come Wednesday, Bill Clinton will campaign with Barack Obama–the former president’s first joint appearance with the Democratic nominee–at an evening rally here.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of South Florida spoke for many of her fellow Democrats: “People are so excited that we have a presidential campaign that is still here.” Translation: She and others in her party are amazed that Obama has a real chance to carry this state.
The fact that McCain is on the defensive here and in such a broad swath of Republican territory is emblematic of the 2008 endgame. It is a sign of the extent to which Obama has outorganized and outstrategized McCain, and an indication of how almost all the issues have moved against the GOP.
A senior moment for the GOP presidential candidate. It’s George Schultz. George P. Schultz, John.
Today’s installment bring us the political opinion of a longtime Bay area musician. Join us in giving your opinion in the survey after the jump:
Bob Noxious, longtime Tampa Bay musician and guitarist for the Dive Bar Stalkers
He’s voting for: Barack Obama
Bob Noxious of the Dive Bar Stalkers
Why? “I believe him to be the best candidate for change out of the 13 political parties listed on my Official Sample Ballot.”
What he would say to a McCain supporter: “I’m sure it is a broken record by now, but why would you vote for more of the same? John McCain has voted with George W. Bush over 90 percent of the time, yet he is now trying to frantically separate himself from that evil Republican from Texas. Besides, John McCain’s health has got to be taken as a factor. Already, he is the oldest presidential candidate in history. The man has already overcome skin cancer, yet when I last saw him at the last debate, his jaw looked unnaturally swollen, as if he were speaking through a mouthful of medical gauze. Face it — he’s basically living on borrowed time. Besides, do you want Sarah Palin as your next president? She is a bumbling idiot, as proven weekly on SNL.”
Local candidate that most interests him: “I’m still researching my local candidates, but I can only wonder why my county commissioner here in Pasco County, Ted Schrader, is running uncontested. One would think that a strong Democrat would give him a run for his donation money.”
That would be Jennifer Stone-Anderson, a 51-year-old artist who is out of work and had two months on her hands to paint an elaborate mural on her 2004 Saturn Ion touting the candidacy of Barack Obama.
The south St. Petersburg resident showed off her rolling campaign ad in our parking lot today, pointing out the giant globe that’s really a lit-fuse bomb; Arlington National Cemetery (”where our soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan are buried”); a pink ribbon for breast cancer awareness; and the admonition to recycle (curbside or otherwise) in St. Pete but not to “recycle Bush-McCain.”
Stone-Anderson said she painted the white Ion with acrylics she had leftover at home, on and off, weather permitting, for two months.
Oh, she gets some dirty looks driving it around town. One woman recently told her the “art was ugly.” Stone-Anderson said that made her lose her temper. Others compliment the artwork. Still others slip notes under her windshield wipers, enough for her to put small notes under them directing McCain supporters to use the right wiper and Obama supporters to use the left.
She hopes to get some work soon so she can hold onto the car; she said she took a loan against a 1977 life insurance policy to make her latest (and possibly last) car payment. SEE THE PICS BELOW… Read the rest of this entry »
The activists at U-CAN (United Citizens Action Network) are starting to issue report cards for all of the Hillsborough County, starting with their favorite target, Republican Brian Blair.
He got eight F’s, one C and one D. Something that surely won’t look good on his permanent record:
“Brian is goal oriented and has worked tirelessly to achieve certain goals, however, the goals he strives to achieve are not in alignment with what citizens want — improving quality of life, making growth pay for itself, maintaining our community’s way of life, reducing traffic, reducing the overcrowding in our schools, carefully preserving our environment, managing growth to reduce the shortage of potable water.”
OK, you ask, what the fuck is a Credit Default Swap, and why should I care? Well, they’re the derivative financial instruments that have been a major reason why we’re in this economic shitstorm. Last night’s 60 Minutes did a superb job of explaining these unregulated “side bets” that have been called Financial Weapons of Mass Destruction.
Watch this segment. It’ll explain to the layperson, to the best extent possible, how Credit Default Swaps work and how they fucked everything up. And it’s bound to get you righteously pissed off.
I tried to embed the video here, but the fucker wouldn’t play, so click to check it out.
It just might be the most effective video of the entire campaign season:
Today’s installment brings us the youth vote. You can join in, too, by taking the completely unscientific but fun CL online survey about who you are voting for, after the jump:
Tara Mae Brown-Ogilvie, St. Petersburg College student
She’s voting for: Barack Obama
Why? “Because he is pro-choice, wants to make changes to help out the lower class like such as with assistance in regards to healthcare for those who cannot afford it, and I like his leadership style. When he visited Dunedin before his speech, he simply went into a restaurant and ordered a hamburger and sat with everyone else; he just seems like a very down-to-earth guy who does not put himself before others.”
What she would say to a McCain supporter: “In this election McCain is constantly being outshined by his vice president candidate Palin’s actions or scandals. Just looking at the paper or on any news station the topic more likely than not is always on Palin more so than McCain and if he cannot take control of his own campaign how can he govern a country? Also did you know that he is against gay marriage, concerned only for the higher tax bracket, and wishing to continue this war overseas, which would only further destroy our already falling economy? So if you believe that Bush was a great president than sure, vote for McCain to follow in his footsteps, but if you want change, vote for Obama.”
Local candidate who most interests her: “I honestly am not aware of a local candidate to discuss.”
Talking about the last week of the campaigns and what will happen in the election for president today on Fox 13’s Your Turn show with Kathy Fountain. Phone or e-mail your questions in, yourturn@wtvt.com or call 813-875-8255 or 800-826-4434 (according to the Fox website.)
Meet Vlad and his pal Boris. These gentlemen are from Russia (perhaps) and they have prepared a musical ode to Sarah Palin. Quote the musicians: “Hello Sarah Palin we wrote this song for you because we see you from Russia! Plz respond to our emails!! We like to hear from you!!”
Today’s installment, and don’t forget to vote in the online presidential survey after the jump.
Gary Becker, former St. Petersburg police officer and editor of T.I. Beach Bums webzine
He’s voting for: John McCain. “Being a lifelong Republican, I will vote for McCain.”
Why? “I am not in love with McCain and feel the Republicans may regret not choosing someone else as their candidate. While McCain certainly has the credentials to be president, his Washington ties and the Bush hangover, who has been a disappointment not only to most of the country but also to those of us who supported him, may be too much for McCain to overcome. The Republicans would have been much better off choosing one of the former governors that were available other than McCain. I think we got a taste of that regret when they chose Palin as McCain’s running mate. Having said that, McCain more closely echoes my political beliefs of less federal government, a more aggressive energy program while having the foreign policy experience to deal with the international threats that pose a much greater danger to this nation than a bus load of CEO’s ripping off Wall Street. It’s one thing to watch the Dow go dow,n but a totally different matter watching a skyscraper go down after some terrorists flies an airliner full of people into the building.”
What he would say to an Obama supporter: “The one thing I would say to an Obama supporter is, ‘Do you really think that taxing both small and large business is going to solve all our problems?’ When you raise taxes and remove tax breaks to business, you increase the cost of doing business. When business increases costs it will increase the price of their product, which means you and I pay more for everything, which leads to inflation. It is very simple. When you tax business, you tax the consumer. The only thing any tax increase does is gives Washington more of our money to waste and less money for our economy.
“I have done the math on McCain’s health care program. It would cut my health care costs by about 40 percent, while Obama’s plan would burden me with not only my family’s current health care costs but the eventual cost to provide everyone else with health care. I wish we could provide health care to all, but the nation cannot afford to do so at this time. As far as the economy goes, all of Washington created this mess, fed off the good years and got caught with their pants down when the bottom fell out. I am against the bailout without more accountability from those who were most involved both in Washington and Wall Street. The lending crisis has been 30 years in the making. Add the rise in energy costs, which again is the result of Washington doing nothing for 30 years, and you have the recipe for recession. I am disappointed in the reaction of both candidates. Neither has a clue what to do.”
Local candidate that most interests him: “As far as the local or state elections, the one issue that I am watching is the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment, which would make only male-female unions legal. Though I believe ‘marriage’ should be between a woman and a man, this amendment also states that no other legal union or substantial equivalent shall be valid or recognized. I believe this amendment goes too far and that there should be legal options for those who want to live an alternate lifestyle and want a legal union. It will be very interesting how Florida votes on this amendment. I am very surprised there has been no campaign waged from either side of this issue.”
Ralph Nader brings his Ecology Party ticket presidential campaign to Tampa’s Cuban Club, 2010 N. 14th St., on Tuesday, Oct. 28.
Nader will hold a rally at 6:30 p.m. at the Ybor City location. Suggested contributions for the rally are $10, with students suggested to give $5.
Info at (804) 678-9203 or events@votenader.org.
Today’s installment of our Election Guide coverage, in which we ask the good folks of Tampa Bay: who you voting for?
Take the online survey yourself, after the jump.
Lorna Bracewell, singer-songwriter
She’s voting for: Barack Obama
Credit: Shanna Gillette
Why? “I was torn for a while between him and the Green Party candidate, Cynthia McKinney. It was my memory of the outcome of the 2000 presidential election when Bush ‘beat’ Gore in Florida by such a narrow margin that ultimately convinced me to support Sen. Obama. Unfortunately, at this time in our country a vote for a third-party candidate is a wasted one.”
What she would say to a McCain supporter: “I’ve had a series of great conversations with my dad (a longtime Republican and a McCain supporter) over the course of this election cycle. Early on our conversations focused on so-called ‘values’ issues: abortion, same-sex marriage, etc. My dad was generally sympathetic to my arguments. He’s a good guy with two daughters, one of whom is a lesbian, after all. More recently our talks have focused on economic issues. These, it turns out, are the crux of it all for him. It turns out my dad is a disillusioned liberal. He supported [Lyndon] Johnson and really believed in his vision of a ‘great society.’ When that didn’t pan out, he became a trickle-downer. What I’d say to a McCain supporter is what I’ve said to him: You’ve had your turn. Let’s give the other economic perspective a try. Things can’t get any worse.”
Local candidate who most interests her: “I am excited about Bill Heller for State Representative in District 52. He’s done a great job for the last two years championing smart public school and property tax reform. I am also supporting Jack Killingsworth in the [Pinellas] Supervisor of Elections race. Deborah Clark’s decision to cut the number of early voting sites in the county has had and will continue to have a disproportionate impact on low-income residents on St. Petersburg’s south side. I couldn’t disagree with her response to the budget cuts she had to deal with more.
“I know you didn’t ask … but I wanted to add an exhortation to everyone, Democrat and Republican, gay and straight, young and old to vote a stentorian NO on Amendment 2. Florida already has a legislative ban on same sex marriage. Traditional marriage is safe and sound in the Sunshine State. Amendment 2 would strip away existing health care and other vital protections relied upon by unmarried Floridians, gay and straight. It is bad public policy.”
The Times has previewed its Sunday newspaper with its endorsement of Barack Obama:
We recommended Obama before the Florida primary in January as the Democrat who offered the most promise and a fresh start. Since then, he has continued to impress. His approach to creating a fairer tax policy and expanding health care with a blend of public and private coverage stands up well to scrutiny. His determination to rely more on diplomacy than force in foreign policy and to seek a timely, orderly withdrawal of troops from Iraq remains the most pragmatic approach. His acknowledgement that more troops are needed in Afghanistan should reassure those concerned about his willingness to use military force where needed. His energy proposals, while opening the door more than necessary to offshore drilling, are bold and balanced. As the economic crisis has mushroomed, he has responded with an appropriate mix of caution and sound principles grounded in reality.
We also recommended McCain in the Florida Republican primary. At the time, we acknowledged our serious disagreements with his embrace of the Bush tax cuts he once opposed, his determination to keep fighting in Iraq and his opposition to abortion rights. But the Arizona senator’s history of challenging conventional Republican thinking on issues such as immigration and climate change, his candor and his willingness to reach across party lines made him an attractive candidate. McCain, 72, remains an American hero, a former Vietnam prisoner of war whose service to his country has been honorable. Yet his campaign in recent months has been unworthy of his record and raises serious questions about his judgment and leadership if elected.
Most disturbing has been McCain’s choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. It was a reckless decision based on political calculations, not the country’s best interests. There were many more qualified candidates, including Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. While Palin is an aggressive campaigner who has her own independent streak, she is clearly not prepared to be a heartbeat away from the presidency. Contrast McCain’s most important decision as a presidential candidate with Obama’s thoughtful selection of Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, an experienced hand comfortable on the world stage and well versed in foreign policy.
The Times also recognizes this coming landmark of diversity:
A generation ago, the nomination of an African-American for president would have been unimaginable. Now Obama stands on the brink of history, and his election would send a powerful message to the world about how far Americans have come on issues of equality and opportunity. But voters should look beyond skin color in selecting the next president. They should look for the candidate who best represents their hopes and aspirations, who can meet the nation’s difficult challenges with sophisticated responses, who can inspire us and unite this country as he turns the page and leads America in a new direction.
For president of the United States, the Times recommends Barack Obama.
Both my parents are lifelong Republicans who plan to vote for John McCain. Being raised by lifelong Reps, I took their beliefs as my own until I was into my 20s. (This was not a big positive for my social life in college.) I voted for Dole in 1996. (Yes, I can’t believe it either.) I voted for Bush in 2000 — a decision that has inspired nothing but shame since. In the early 2000s, my eyes opened to the world outside of the Conservative bubble and I didn’t like what I saw. Cribbing from Carlin, I now tell people that I was a Republican until I reached the Age of Reason.
Though we don’t “fight” about politics anymore, I still have “discussions” with my folks over the news of the day. This morning, during one such “discussion,” my mother brought up Barack Obama’s questionable citizenship. In fairness to her, she wasn’t insisting that Obama was a commie from Indonesia or other such nonsense. Apparently, there are lawsuits pending over the matter, and she asking me what I knew about it so she could form a more well-rounded opinion on the subject. Truth is, I hadn’t looked into Obama’s citizenship in months as I thought this was settled.
It isn’t.
In the last week or so, conservative radio has picked up the Obama “faked birth certificate” story and run with it. Limbaugh has even gone so far as to suggest that Obama’s trip to see his dying grandmother is really about fixing his birth certificate problem. Michael Savage is spewing similar bile across the airwaves. The story hasn’t gained mainstream traction (primarly because it’s ridiculous), but it’s percolating under the surface.
So, I did some research and wrote the following e-mail. (Yes, I really send e-mail like this to my parents.) I’m posting it here because I assume there are many young people out there who are having similar conversations with your parents or relatives who are McCain voters, and the following information might be useful to you. Enjoy!
As reported in The Hill, the latest ad up in South Florida markets by incumbent Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart shows video of former Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez opening a can of whoop-ass on a much smaller man during a protest in the heavily Latino city.
In the 1860 election, that is.
Timed to accompany today’s editorial endorsement of Democrat Barack Obama for president, the New York Times has a way-cool multimedia page with all of its presidential endorsements since that 1860 election, a must-graze for political junkies, historians and presidential geeks of all stripes.
In 1860, amid fears that Lincoln’s election would rip the nation apart, the Times wrote:
Things will go on very much as they have hitherto — except that we shall have honesty and manliness instead of meanness and corruption in the Executive departments, and a decent regard for the opinions of mankind in the tone and talk of the Government on the subject of Slavery.
Excerpts from its Obama endorsement after the jump.
The fifth in our series, to be published in print next Wednesday in Creative Loafing. Take our online survey yourself, after the jump.
l.i.f.e, professional poet in Tampa
He’s voting for: Barack Obama
Why? “His vision for the future of the masses of people in this country is clear, logical, and more in line with the best interests of the masses of people here than any of the other candidates.”
What he would say to a McCain supporter: “I’d ask the same question Sen. Obama’s campaign has been asking, ‘Can us everyday people in this county afford four more years of government run with the same or similar policies as those that have caused people here, and around the world, distress and crisis?’”
Local candidate who most interests him: “The local candidate that interests me most is current Supervisor of Elections, Mr. Buddy Johnson. I’m also quite interested in the race between Doug Belden and Beverly P. Harris.”
