OK, how many of you are making calls this weekend? I've been calling Nevada since 11:00 AM today. I caught a few people at home. Some are Obama supporters, a few are McBushies, and some haven't made up their minds yet. Overall, I'd say today has been productive for me.
If you haven't yet checked out My.BarackObama.com, take a look. There's plenty we can do between now and 11/04/08 to help Obama win. Whether you like making calls or knocking doors or writing letters or raising $$, there's something for each of us to do to make victory happen.
And speaking of that, it's time for me to finish my calls. ;-)
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Weekend Poll Report: Waiting to Exhale
The bad news: The tracking polls look tight again, as McBush-Failin' got a little bounce.
The good news: Obama's still up, and the Rethuglicans still can't secure a lead.
Gallup Daily:
Obama 47%
McCain 45%
Rasmussen Tracking:
Obama 49%
McCain 46%
OK, so McCain rose 2 in Gallup while Obama actually rose 1 in Rasmussen. While it's still a little early to declare a final verdict on the GOP Convention, the signs now point to a flop. If the best the GOP can do is narrow the race a little, it still looks to me like Democrats hold a slight upper hand in this race.
Think about it, this race is 2004 in reverse in so many ways. We're now seeing a base vs. base ground war, except this time we hold the advantage in party registration and overall excitement. We're seeing an issues vs. personality question, but it looks like Democrats have an edge as more people are worrying about the economic slowdown.
So we'll have to wait a few more days to see how the post-conventions general election battle really looks. But overall, I think we still have plenty reason to keep fighting for victory. Don't breathe a sigh of relief yet, but rather work your you-know-what off to make it happen. :-)
The good news: Obama's still up, and the Rethuglicans still can't secure a lead.
Gallup Daily:
Obama 47%
McCain 45%
Rasmussen Tracking:
Obama 49%
McCain 46%
OK, so McCain rose 2 in Gallup while Obama actually rose 1 in Rasmussen. While it's still a little early to declare a final verdict on the GOP Convention, the signs now point to a flop. If the best the GOP can do is narrow the race a little, it still looks to me like Democrats hold a slight upper hand in this race.
Think about it, this race is 2004 in reverse in so many ways. We're now seeing a base vs. base ground war, except this time we hold the advantage in party registration and overall excitement. We're seeing an issues vs. personality question, but it looks like Democrats have an edge as more people are worrying about the economic slowdown.
So we'll have to wait a few more days to see how the post-conventions general election battle really looks. But overall, I think we still have plenty reason to keep fighting for victory. Don't breathe a sigh of relief yet, but rather work your you-know-what off to make it happen. :-)
Obama the Fighter
FINALLY! I hope we see more of this on the campaign trail. If Obama fights, Obama wins. :-)
Friday, September 5, 2008
Virginia Republicans...
FOR OBAMA!!
Isn't this awesome? At this rate, McBush-Failin' won't have very many "red states" to count on come November. ;-)
Isn't this awesome? At this rate, McBush-Failin' won't have very many "red states" to count on come November. ;-)
What Community Organizers Are Doing in Ohio
So John McBush, Sarah Failin', and their GOP don't like community organizers?
Well, I guess they'll be losing Ohio to us. Haha. We win. ;-)
Well, I guess they'll be losing Ohio to us. Haha. We win. ;-)
Moving Past McBush, Building a Better Future with Obama
I remember not that long ago, President Bill Clinton vowed to work with us to build a bridge to the 21st Century. And build it, we did! During the Clinton years, we saw record economic growth that made everyone more prosperous. We had a world community that respected us and loved us. We had a nation we could be proud of, and America was on the right track.
Now fast forward eight years to today. George W. Bush has taken us across the bridge, but back into the 20th Century. We have become a nation with an overstretched military stuck fighting an unwinnable occupation when they should be keeping our nation safe. We have an economy in ruins and an incredibly shrinking middle class. We have a climate in crisis and an energy emergency that's made us dependent on hostile foreign regimes. We desperately need to change course, and most Americans know that.
When I saw John McCain utter "change is coming" at the Republican Convention last night, I simply wanted to rush to the bathroom and lose my dinner. How is he "change"? What will he "change". McCain's entire platform of "change" consists entirely of the same wrong policies that George W. Bush has used to wreck us in the first place. If Bush took us back across the bridge to the 20th Century, McCain will simply burn that bridge as he & Sarah Palin rush us back into the 19th Century Gilded Age.
The reason why I am a Democrat is that I want what's best for our country. I want us to have the best possible open society, the best possible education, the best possible jobs, the best possible health care, the best possible quality of life, the best possible relationship with our planet, and the best possible relationship with our fellow human beings. That's why I admire what FDR did to bring us out of the Great Depression and defeat the threat of fascism. That's why I look up to JFK and his call for us to be a better people. That's why I will always love Bill & Hillary Clinton and I won't stop thinking about tomorrow.
And you know what? That's why I look forward to a brighter tomorrow with Democrats like Barack Obama and Joe Biden. When it comes to our nation's future, the Republican Party of George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, John McCain, and Sarah Palin simply don't get it. They want to apply 19th Century "ideas" in a 21st Century world. We need new ideas to solve the climate crisis, fix our economy, make our health care system work, and keep our nation secure. And today, Democrats have all the forward thinking ideas.
This election may not look like a cakewalk now. But you know what? We simply can't stop fighting. We have the upper hand now. We have the bright ideas. We have the unprecedented enthusiasm. We're looking forward to the future and we're proud if it.
Let's keep going. Let's keep working. Let's keep winning. Now is opportunity to put the past behind us, and move ahead to the future. We can do it... Yes we can!
Now fast forward eight years to today. George W. Bush has taken us across the bridge, but back into the 20th Century. We have become a nation with an overstretched military stuck fighting an unwinnable occupation when they should be keeping our nation safe. We have an economy in ruins and an incredibly shrinking middle class. We have a climate in crisis and an energy emergency that's made us dependent on hostile foreign regimes. We desperately need to change course, and most Americans know that.
When I saw John McCain utter "change is coming" at the Republican Convention last night, I simply wanted to rush to the bathroom and lose my dinner. How is he "change"? What will he "change". McCain's entire platform of "change" consists entirely of the same wrong policies that George W. Bush has used to wreck us in the first place. If Bush took us back across the bridge to the 20th Century, McCain will simply burn that bridge as he & Sarah Palin rush us back into the 19th Century Gilded Age.
The reason why I am a Democrat is that I want what's best for our country. I want us to have the best possible open society, the best possible education, the best possible jobs, the best possible health care, the best possible quality of life, the best possible relationship with our planet, and the best possible relationship with our fellow human beings. That's why I admire what FDR did to bring us out of the Great Depression and defeat the threat of fascism. That's why I look up to JFK and his call for us to be a better people. That's why I will always love Bill & Hillary Clinton and I won't stop thinking about tomorrow.
And you know what? That's why I look forward to a brighter tomorrow with Democrats like Barack Obama and Joe Biden. When it comes to our nation's future, the Republican Party of George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, John McCain, and Sarah Palin simply don't get it. They want to apply 19th Century "ideas" in a 21st Century world. We need new ideas to solve the climate crisis, fix our economy, make our health care system work, and keep our nation secure. And today, Democrats have all the forward thinking ideas.
This election may not look like a cakewalk now. But you know what? We simply can't stop fighting. We have the upper hand now. We have the bright ideas. We have the unprecedented enthusiasm. We're looking forward to the future and we're proud if it.
Let's keep going. Let's keep working. Let's keep winning. Now is opportunity to put the past behind us, and move ahead to the future. We can do it... Yes we can!
Did McBush's Speech Work?
Nate at 538.com doubts it, and so do I. McCain tried to distance himself from the GOP, but all he gave were standard GOP talking points. He tried to look different from Bush, but all his policy plans look just like Bush's. Where is the change he says is coming?
Color me unimpressed. If I hadn't already made my decision, last night's underwhelming performance would NOT have drawn me to McBush-Failin'.
Color me unimpressed. If I hadn't already made my decision, last night's underwhelming performance would NOT have drawn me to McBush-Failin'.
Bush-O-Nomics in Action
Bush, McCain, and their GOP should be proud of themselves... Shouldn't they?
The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, dramatic proof of the mounting damage a deeply troubled economy is inflicting on workers and businesses alike.
The Labor Department's report, released Friday, showed the increasing toll the housing, credit and financial crises are taking on the economy.
6.1% unemployment? 84,000 jobs lost? Looming recession? And "the fundamentals of our economy are strong", as Bush & McCain say? Gimme a break!
Count me out... We desperately need change.
The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, dramatic proof of the mounting damage a deeply troubled economy is inflicting on workers and businesses alike.
The Labor Department's report, released Friday, showed the increasing toll the housing, credit and financial crises are taking on the economy.
6.1% unemployment? 84,000 jobs lost? Looming recession? And "the fundamentals of our economy are strong", as Bush & McCain say? Gimme a break!
Count me out... We desperately need change.
Community Organizers
A friend pointed out to me: Remember, Jesus was a community organizer and Pontius Pilate was a governor.
Stick to the Issues
Earlier this week, I wrote that the Obama and McCain campaigns probably wouldn't want to go after one another on the experience issue. As it happens, I was wrong. Either directly, or through surrogates, both have attacked the other for having nominees with thin resumes. Rasmussen has some polling data on how the voter's take on the experience issue:
In Sunday's post, I also wrote that we needed to be very careful in how we criticized Palin, being careful to avoid sexist language in what we wrote and what we said.
It easier to beat a governor who believes that the earth is only 6000 years old, that women who are raped should not have an abortion, and that 47 million uninsured Americans isn't a crisis than it is to defeat a hockey mom with an imperfect family. Stick to the issues. That's what we're good at. That is how we will win!
Thirty-nine percent (39%) also believe the GOP vice presidential nominee has better experience to be president of the United States than Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.At first glance, we should be relieved. It's effectively a draw. But look at the wording: "better experience to be president." The danger for Democrats is that our weaker candidate is at the top of the ticket.
But 49% give Obama the edge on experience, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey – taken before Palin’s historic speech Wednesday night to the Republican National Convention.
While Republicans and Democrats predictably favor their party’s candidate by overwhelming margins, the experience gap among voters unaffiliated with either party is even narrower than the national totals. Forty-two percent (42%) say Obama has better experience to be president, but 37% say Palin does.
The potential problem for Democrats is that Obama, the junior U.S. senator from Illinois and a former state legislator, is the party’s standard-bearer, while Palin, an ex-mayor and now governor of Alaska, is number two on her party’s ticket.And also note that the date for this poll was collected on September 3rd, before Sarah Palin's speech at the convention, which may have gotten her a few more points. Friends, bloggers, Obamacrats, and Clintonistas for Obama, the experience issue is not a winner for us. We need to let it go.
In Sunday's post, I also wrote that we needed to be very careful in how we criticized Palin, being careful to avoid sexist language in what we wrote and what we said.
Now, a warning. We have to be careful about how exactly we criticize Sarah Palin. There are still some very hard feelings about the sexism that pervaded the Democratic primary. I know that because I myself have them. (But I'm not allowing them to cloud my judgment about who to vote for in November.) Democrats should criticize Palin for her actions as a public official and her stands on the issues (drill, drill, drill, bomb, bomb, bomb and science schmience). Joking around about her beauty pageant background, belittling her as a token (especially when our own historic candidate has a thin resume), and using terms that demean women--such as bimbo--will only bring up bad memories and force some progressives to defend a candidate whom we do not like.The Obama campaign has officially been careful, and both Senators Obama and Biden have indicated that the Palin family is off-limits, but the commentariat and Obama's overzealous supporters, particularly those at the big orange cesspool, have gone unhinged. And the McCain campaign has played it brilliantly. The media is on defense and the public is siding with Sarah Palin.
Over half of U.S. voters (51%) think reporters are trying to hurt Sarah Palin with their news coverage, and 24% say those stories make them more likely to vote for Republican presidential candidate John McCain in November.We have winning issues. We have more money. We have stronger voter ID. We are better organized. And our side is hungry for victory. We can win this race without going to gutter. What recent history--and perhaps this polling date--have told us is that Republicans play gutter politics far better than Democrats.
SNIP
Among unaffiliated voters, 49% say reporters are trying to hurt Palin, while 32% say their coverage is unbiased. Only five percent (5%) say reporters are trying to help her.
It easier to beat a governor who believes that the earth is only 6000 years old, that women who are raped should not have an abortion, and that 47 million uninsured Americans isn't a crisis than it is to defeat a hockey mom with an imperfect family. Stick to the issues. That's what we're good at. That is how we will win!
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