Kerry's Veep Search Using Polls?

ABCNEWS.com

Perhaps so. The winner, according to ABC, was John McCain. A Kerry-McCain ticket beat Bush-Cheney by 12-15 points, resulting in a Reaganesque electoral college landslide.

No wonder we've been hearing so much about McCain as a potential veep. A 12-15 point margin is worth floating a few baloons over...

Regardless, that's not going to happen. The only person that's said No more than McCain to being Kerry's veep is Hillary Clinton. So enough already.

(One thing more: The constant speculation has forced McCain to very publicly show his true colors. This is something that can only be a good thing. Anyone enamored of McCain as a Democratic running mate should check out his basic positions - he is not one of us.)

Two statements in this article got me to chuckling, though:

When told about the polling, Republicans said it indicated Kerry was inconsistent in what he says he's looking for in a running mate.

"If true, this is glaring example of Kerry being for and against picking the best person for the job," said one Bush adviser.

Ignore the flip-flop spin: that seems to be required of any Republican talking about Kerry these days. It's the idea that polling wouldn't pick the best running mate.

Kerry's criteria are a person "qualified to be President and someone (he) can get along with." Only Kerry knows with whom he can get along, but who better to establish a person's qualifications to be President than the consensus of the American people? That's what polling potential veep candidates would determine - who the public views as "qualified" to be President. The more qualified the candidate, the higher the approval rating of the ticket.

Republicans slamming Kerry for using polling in this situation are insulting the American public's ability to decide for themselves who's qualified to be president.

Also:

The adviser went on to contrast Kerry's selection process with Bush's decision to choose Dick Cheney as his running mate for the 2000 election. "President Bush picked the best man for the job with zero political calculation or polling," he said.

Zero political calculation?

**pause while bolo wipes spewed margarita off of his iMac screen**

Bush's process for choosing Cheney was to appoint Cheney the head of his veep selecting process, remember? In fine Halliburton style, Cheney conducted a few interviews and then hightailed it to Wyoming to register as a voter there and thus sidestep the Constitutional block of two people from the same state being President and Vice President.

A calculated political move, probably whispered into Bush's ear by Karl Rove himself. Are these guys fooling anyone but themselves on this?

Granny D is Running For the Senate

Think Positive About Our Future and Work Like Hell

In New Hampshire. Dang. I'd love to vote for this lady...

"George W. Bush Was Considered A Deserter By The United States Air Force"

HOW BUSH FAILED TO FULFILL HIS DUTY

The Democratic Veteran points us to this post that examines the military record of George W. Bush most thoroughly. All the documents released to us so far have been explained. All the relevent military law has been read and applied. And the picture doesn't seem to be a pretty one.

Who'd a-thunk it?

Here's One For Mattie Stepanek

baltimoresun.com

By his request, his coffin was covered with a United Nations flag. His mother said that though Mattie suffered much pain in his life, the hardest he ever cried was last year when we invaded Iraq.

Another man of peace passes too quickly into the night. Thank you for your life, Mattie. Thanks for raising the standard.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

Guardian Unlimited

That's the title for the sixth Harry Potter book.

As well as confirming that Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince had at one point been a contender for the title of the fourth volume in the series (now Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets), Rowling further piqued readers' curiosity by admitting that the "half blood prince" of the title is neither Lord Voldemort or Harry himself. However, fans should not expect any further revelations; Rowling ended her message with "That's all I'm saying on THAT subject until the book's published."

Well, the Chamber of Secrets is the second book - Goblet of Fire is the fourth, the one they're filming now.

I'm not crazy about that title, though. And how could it have been the fourth book? The prince must be from one of the schools that participated in the contest.

I was about to say confidently that Neville must be the Half Blood Prince...except that Neville's parents are both wizards. Oh, well. Rowing will get these last two out eventually. Even if something happens to her, the last books will be written via her detailed outline...after all, they finally got a sequel to Gone With The Wind, didn't they?

Ralph Reed: Christian Activist, Bush Lieutenant...and Gambling Lobbyist

LiberalOasis

Shucks. He's just taking after his mentor, Pat Robertson, who never met a dollar he wouldn't chase.

Fahrenheit 9/11 #1 Movie in AmeIRAQ SOVEREIGNITY BESTOWED TWO DAYS EARLY

CNN.com

Now that couldn't have anything to do with the early transfer of power, could it? BushCo wouldn't have bumped the ceremony to knock Michael Moore off of the top story of the day...right?

Right?

(special thanks to GenTaggerd, who pointed this out over at SmirkingChimp.com)

Who's Paying for the Bush Tax Cuts?

Tax Policy Center

Check out this nice report from the Tax Policy Center: Distributional Effects of the 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts and Their Financing.

It's not as wonkish as the title suggests. It considers two ways that the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 could have been financed (besides the heavy borrowing of this Republican government, which will only delay and aggravate the effects of this analysis).

One is by assuming that every household pays an equal amount in lost benefits and/or other taxes to finance the tax cuts. The second assumes that all households pay an equal percentage of household income (2.6%) to finance the cuts.

The results? Far more households lose more than they gain from the Bush tax cuts. The "equal money" scenario is especially brutal to the poor and middle class households, but both clearly favor the richer households on the spectrum.

Bush's borrow-and-spend policies are masking the true effects of the ruinous effect of his tax cuts for America, but the piper will have to be paid one day. It's time to get some grownups back in charge in Washington.

Trickle-Down Democracy

U.S. Edicts Curb Power Of Iraq's Leadership (washingtonpost.com)

Details are emerging of how sovereign Iraq will be on June 30. Bremer is making the rules and appointing his favorites to five-year terms.

So the people we installed are going to do things the way we say to do it, and that's a sovereign nation. Didn't you just know this is the way it was going to happen?

UPDATE: Doonesbury has another tidbit to chew on today. I don't know how long the link will be good for, though...