President Barack Obama addresses the American Tea Party rallies (and Fox News) by saying he welcomes a serious discussion of the issues and, specifically, how to pay for health care in this CNN clip.
The first 100 days of the president’s administration is usually used as a report card to judge its success or gauge where it might be for the rest of its term. However, the closing of President Obama’s honeymoon may not even be the news headline as reports of Arlen Specter switching parties overshadows the president. This completely arbitrary 100th-day-mark might underscore more the status of the Republican Party than anything else.
From the Stooopid Idea Dep’t.:
Fly the backup of Air Force One, a 747, with its engines screaming, low over Lower Manhattan, F-16 trailing it, without telling New Yorkers it was all for a photo shoot and not another 9-11 attack.
The White House Military advisor has apologized.
Video after the jump.
Bienvenidos a El Paso!
In my two decades in Tampa Bay, there have been three dominant Metro columnists at the Tampa Tribune: Steve Otto, Howard Troxler and Dan Ruth (who was on 1B for a while before being moved inside the A section and god knows where else).
So it is an indication of the Trib’s decline that two of those three now work for the rival St. Petersburg Times. And here is a weekly video segment with Ruth and Troxler discussing the ideas of the day, and it is surprisingly good (for two old print guys sitting in front of a camera, that is).
No softballs for Carrie Prejean, the Christian college student who is Miss California competing in the Miss USA pageant. (She didn’t win, by the way.) She drew something more than the normal “Why do you want world peace” fluff query during the show last night, a question from Perez Hilton about gay rights:
Perez Hilton: “Vermont recently became the 4th state to legalize same-sex marriage. Do you think every state should follow suit. Why or why not?”
Prejean: “Well I think its great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. And you know what, in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised and that’s how I think it should be between a man and a woman. Thank you very much.”
Then all hell broke loose backstage. Read about it here.
From today’s St. Petersburg mayoral forum comes this video snippet of candidate Deveron Gibbons responding to a question about the most recent killing in Bartlett Park, in which a young girl was killed in a gang-shooting. GIbbons recalls his own days in that neighborhood and the deaths he witnessed.
Wow, I have to award a douchebaggery medal for all the “news media” folks involved in this round robin of bullshit. The only person who even appears mildly intelligent is the tea-bagger, even if his history lesson about Lincoln is a bit off topic…
First, the CNN kerfuffle:
Then, Shep Smith’s retort on Fox:
Our country is headed to hell in a handbasket if this is what is going to pass for journalism going forward.
Celebrating April 15, Tax Day, for those who hate it and those who tolerate it.
First up, the Beatles (actually George Harrison’s anti-tax sentiment) from their horrible 1960s cartoon that didn’t even feature their real voices (except for the songs).
Donald Duck is pro-tax (if it means having enough money to beat back facism):
Oh, and by the way, didja know that paying taxes is voluntary and the IRS is illegal? After the jump …
FreedomWorks Foundation is putting together a Tea Party of Tampa’s own, for April 15, after a similar protest of the bailout and government spending drew 4,000 in Orlando. I’ve talked with one politico who plans on being there and he said he was told to expect 5,000-10,000 people at the twin rallies at noon and 5 p.m. in downtown Tampa’s Gaslight Park.
Here’s the details from FreedomWorks, plus a Tea Party video after the jump:
I knew those hours of compiling names like Red Ruffensore and Ben Dover in middle school would pay off one day. I just didn’t know it would pay off in local broadcast television news.
h/t to my buddy Kathy at Watch This Now.
Former House Speaker and keeper of the Jeb! flame Marco Rubio weighs in with another video from his non-campaign for the U.S. Senate. The only real question here is will he go ahead with a run against Charlie Crist (widely expected to seek the cozy Senate seat being abandoned by Melquiades Martinez in 2010 to die on the sword of conservatism against an the infidel governor??
A video excerpt from our political podcast taping this week with me, WMNF’s Mitch Perry and Democratic consultant Ana Cruz of Leading Edge LLC.
From the “Consider the Source” File:
The answer would seem to be: Hail Yeah!
From the AP: “Japanese Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa’s resigned Tuesday after a seemingly drunken performance at a recent G-7 summit in Rome. Video footage of his final press conference shows the 55-year-old confused, drowsy and slurring his speech.”
Love the yawn at about the 1:40 mark.
Source: YouTube
From ABC Action News:
ABC Action News has learned that Dr. Abdul Rao, an associate dean of the USF College of Health will resign effective Friday.
As it was first reported last week, Rao admitted to taking the bike belonging to a graduate student in the health department, but claimed he only lent the bike to a handyman who needed transportation.
Rao makes a salary of $384,000 per year overseeing research grants at USF. The bike was worth about $100.
Rao came to the university in 2006 and at least two professors in the College of Medicine tell ABC Action News that Dr. Rao was widely disliked among the faculty.
Video of his re-creation of “The Bicycle Thief” after the jump:
Words fail me, so we’ll go right to the video:
The California congresswoman has been through redlining fights, predatory lending fights, and lots of other grievances with the banking system. And she’s seen nothing like the current screwing that credit cardholders are taking from U.S. banks that are enjoying TARP money.
Watching this is 7 minutes and 8 seconds well spent, even if it does mean listening to Waters’ convoluted (and I’m being extremely generous) questions.
Today’s side skirmish in the economic stimulus package debate is between the large and monied public employees’ union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and 21 targeted Republicans in the House of Representatives. AFSCME and Americans United for Change, a larger pro-labor group that it is part of, today dropped television and regional radio commercials in those lawmakers’ districts.
Here’s the TV vid:
Eric Cantor, the rising star of the far right in Congress, had his own brand of comeback, with his aide telling Politico that an old, redubbed AFSCME commercial would serve as Cantor’s official response. (View it after the jump, plus an update with AFSCME demanding an apology.)
One camera, some footage of paradegoers dancing, top with a music track, and voila!
Just a fun day filming the buds along the parade route with your iPhone 3G when some ass-bustin’ goes down a few feet away:
From a South Tampa house party, perhaps the most troubling version of “Ain’t No Sunshine” ever committed to digital tape:
Another installment from our Sad, But True Dep’t. “I love the Weather & Opera section…”
Yes, we journalists did it to ourselves, in part. And yes, I know this vid mocks The New York Times, but I think the lesson applies across the board. I found it silly earlier this week to see a great newspaper being forced to offer buyouts and cut benefits and yet still throw four (yes, that’s 4, count ‘em) reporters and at least one photog on a story about Denny’s offering free Grand Slam Breakfasts.
I don’t know whether to laugh, cry or blow my brains out.
(h/t to Joran here in the CL Tampa offices and Murray in the home office)
Former Rep. Dick Armey was scolded after losing his cool during an appearance on Hardball last night, where he told Salon editor in chief Joan Walsh he’s “so damn glad” she isn’t his wife.
Walsh and Armey were in a heated debate about the relevance of Rush Limbaugh in the GOP.
“I am so damn glad that you could never be my wife, ’cause I surely wouldn’t have to listen to that prattle from you every day,” Armey said.
“Well, that makes two of us,” Walsh shot back.
New York Times columnist Bob Herbert, waiting off camera for an appearance, later said on-air: “Dick Armey was so far out of line in the last segment with his sexist comments, and he owes Joan Walsh and your viewers an apology.”
Matthews later apologized on behalf of the former House Majority Leader, and said the comments were “overboard.”
Video below: Read the rest of this entry »
The lowlights of the Bush Administration in 2:08:
OK, I’m cheating here, but we had a tie at No. 2:
2. (tie) The Daily Show, “Barack Obama: He completes us”
2. (tie) Ron Howard for Barack Obama
And the No. 1 political video of the year is …
1. 8 years later
Not a big fan of the Jabbers, but here goes:
I started the Top 10 countdown on Friday, and the No. 7 video shows a bit of frustration between Keith Olbermann and conservative Joe Scarborough. Check back daily for the rest of the Top 10 as I unveil the No. 1 political video of 2008 on New Year’s Eve:
7. Keith Olbermann to Joe Scarborough: Get a shovel
I started the Top 10 countdown on Friday, and today’s installment bring us No. 8. Check back daily for the rest of the Top 10 as I unveil the No. 1 political video of 2008 on New Year’s Eve:
8. Amy Goodman of Democracy Now being arrested at Republican National Convention
It’s November 6, 2008 in Hillsborough: Do you know who your county commissioner is?
No, you don’t. And that’s exactly what Kevin Beckner’s campaign manager, Mitch Kates, predicted. He’s currently slightly ahead of incumbent Brian Blair, who has yet to concede as early votes are still being counted.
Check out Kates’ prescient concerns from this video, shot at 10:30 p.m. on Election Night at Gaspar’s Grotto in Ybor City:
