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Saturday, May 22, 2004
The New Jersey bellwether From Columbia Journalism Review’s Campaign Desk (via Buzz Machine): Those familiar with New Jersey politics agree that if, in fact, New Jersey is shaping up as a closely-contested battleground state, then the press is missing a bigger story: An impending landslide for Bush. As the Newark Star-Ledger's Hassell told Campaign Desk, "If it is close in New Jersey, then the [national] race will be a romp for Bush."Right now, it’s close in New Jersey. Candidate and convention confusion Boston really screwed up when it accepted the Democratic National Convention this July. From the Boston Globe: “Convention bust may reach $50 million” In the space of two months, the Democratic National Convention has gone from a $154 million boon to Boston to a potential $50 million hit to the local economy as businesses absorb the magnitude of the announced highway, street, and mass-transit closings.Also in the Globe, “Kerry may delay official nomination” Beyond the legalities, changing the purpose of the Democratic convention could pose risks: For decades, the acceptance speeches of newly nominated presidential nominees have been the dramatic high point of campaigns, and they usually trigger a bounce for them in the polls. A Democratic convention that neither produces an official nominee nor a speech by Kerry that includes the words, ''I accept your nomination," could leave some voters confused or deflated.Not to mention that it would be a huge waste of taxpayer money: Raising the stakes for the city and state, too, the Democratic Party has received about $15 million in taxpayer funds to hold its nominating convention. Trevor Potter, a former FEC chairman who is now president of the independent Campaign Legal Center, predicts that Democrats would probably have to return the money if the event did not produce a nominee. ''If this convention doesn't produce a nominee in Boston, what's the point?" Potter said.Ha-ha! Good one! A Democrat returning money! Even better, I can envision some brutal sarcasm at the Republicans’ convention a month later: Speaker: "And so my fellow Republicans, we need to stand tall with our President in the race against….(feigns confusion)….the Democratic nominee, whomever that is. (Looks offstage) did he accept it?" The new strategy of the Kerry campaign: “Bring it on...after a five week delay.” Me too! Here's the WashPost in "Convention as Farce" Mr. Kerry's choice to be seen manipulating the rules will have its own cost, of course -- but it won't be in cash. We do look forward to his non-acceptance speech.Doesn't this set the stage for some great mischief by Hillary, or Kucinich, or Sharpton? Bumper sticker contest Bill Quick on Daily Pundit is having a contest for the best bumper sticker slogan to encapsulate the non-nomination of Kerry at the Democratic National Convention. Here's mine: Catchy, no? Extra: I like Terpsboy’s too: “Kerry 2004 – Maybe. We’ll let you know.” Friday, May 21, 2004
Will Kerry give an “acknowledgement of nomination” speech? This is just too much: Kerry considers postponing acceptance of nomination "Only John Kerry could be for a nominating convention, but be against the nomination," Ken Mehlman, the Bush-Cheney campaign manager, said in a written statement. "This is just the latest example of John Kerry's belief that the rules are for other people, not for him."Here’s my prediction: the Democrats will find any way possible to justify pushing off the “official” nomination so that they can raise more money. “Oh, he didn’t sign the paperwork yet” – something like that. Mark Kilmer: "I accepted the nomination at the Democratic National Convention in July before I didn't not accept the nomination at the Democratic National Convention in July." Heh. Even ridicule along this line won't stop the McAuliffe money hunt. It's all about the Benjamins for that guy. NJ up for grabs? A sloppy article by the normally-good John Podhoretz in today's New York Post. It's all well-worn Presidential politics, but no answers to the question why New Jersey (normally a safe blue state) might be up for grabs this year. Here's a hint: New Jersey lost the second largest number of its citizens on 9/11. NJ might be a little more concerned about the war on terrorism. Massachusetts up for grabs? It may be after the Democratic National Convention. It looks like the Dems are going to tick off everybody anywhere close to Boston: The staggering scope of the security measures for the Democratic National Convention became clear yesterday, as state and federal authorities detailed changes that surpassed the worst fears of many residents and businesses: nearly 40 miles of major roadway closures, a vehicle-free zone around the FleetCenter, and parking bans that will extend through the Back Bay.Hey, I’m not saying the Republicans’ New York convention is going to be any better, but the persistent stream of bad news about the Dems’ convention is impossible to ignore. Air America conspiracy alert: Driving home tonight I heard the clowns at Air America discussing the possibility (probability?) of Bush declaring martial law and suspending the November elections. Fools: don't you know we already have Osama? He'll be doing the perp walk in September. Bloggus Interruptus Frankly, I knew the day was coming. I just couldn't keep up the pace of blogging at work and keep it unnoticed. Basically I was told to "cool it" so now my blogging will be limited to my home computer. Apologies to my loyal readers - both of you. Thursday, May 20, 2004
The free market in action From the WashPost: Fuel Sippers Gaining on Heavyweights – As gasoline prices continue to rise, large vehicles lose favor As average gas prices have topped $2 a gallon this month for the first time, cracks are emerging in America's decade-long obsession with bigger and bigger vehicles. Drivers are starting to think about the cost of cruising in two tons of steel, and some are turning to a new crop of innovative -- and more economical -- smaller cars.Isn’t that great? The cost of gas goes up and SUV sales go down. Freedom, baby! The freedom to pay $200 to fill your gas tank or the freedom to buy a Prius. It’s up to you, America! Of course, if John Kerry gets elected (shudder), here’s the government-mandated vehicle we’ll all have to drive:  And we’ll have to carpool. “A stupendously bad prophet” In today’s Opinion Journal, Ronald Bailey details many false predictions of “reverse Cassandra” Paul Ehrlich. We’re gonna freeze, we’re gonna broil, we’re gonna starve, we’re gonna run out of everything – Ehrlich, the modern-day acolyte of Thomas Malthus, is always wrong but true believers still flock to his message of doom. The article has a minor flaw: it leaves out one of my favorite stories about the errant environmentalist, a tale of complete refutation that should have embarrassed Ehrlich into silence (but didn’t). Twenty-four years ago, economist Julian Simon asked doomsayer Ehrlich to put up or shut up: And after a decade of being attacked or ignored by Ehrlich, Simon resolved to show Ehrlich what a joke the doomsayers were. The two never debated (Ehrlich refused, calling Simon a "fringe character"), rather he put his money were his mouth was. In 1980, when Ehrlich was still predicting imminent scarcity, Simon set up a bet wherein he would sell Ehrlich $1,000 dollars worth of any five commodities that Ehrlich chose. Ehrlich would hold the commodities for ten years. If the prices rose -- meaning scarcity -- Simon would buy the commodities back from Ehrlich at the higher price. If the prices fell, Ehrlich would pay Simon the difference. Professor Ehrlich jumped at the bet, noting that he wanted to "accept the offer before other greedy people jumped in."I love that part where Simon allowed Ehrlich to choose the commodities (for the record, he picked copper, chrome, nickel, tin, and tungsten). That’s a mighty burn. Extra: See also Reason v. Faith in Capitalism magazine for more on the Simon-Ehrlich wager. Jeff Jacoby provides some much-needed perspective to the gas price debate: “Sky-high gas prices? Not really.” The 9/11 hearings jump the shark That’s the opinion of the American Spectator today: The 9/11 Commission hearings reached a terminal level of absurdity in New York on Tuesday and Wednesday. Commissioners spent their time attacking the officials responsible for preventing a much greater loss of life, thereby giving the venerable Western tradition of self-criticism another black eye. Meanwhile, spectators and survivors continued to play the card of victimhood, interrupting testimony and carrying on with all the dignity of antiwar protesters at a rally in Union Square.The NY Post agrees with “A National Disgrace.” Were hand puppets used? This Boston Globe article on the Kerry-Nader meeting cracked me up. It opens: “Senator Kerry tried to persuade presidential rival Ralph Nader to quit the race yesterday” but by paragraph four we find “Kerry did not explicitly ask Nader to drop out.” How was Kerry’s request conveyed? Mime? Etch-a-Sketch? Hand shadows? Charades? The mind reels. The new House of Ketchup has two Viking Pundit links, so it must be good. Check it out over at The American Mind. The humor of the New York Times corrections page This one today is a classic: An article on Monday about the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling that ended school segregation misstated a word in a paraphrase from President Bush, who attended a ceremony in Topeka, Kan. He called for a continuing battle to end racial inequality — not equality.A gaffe for the Times is when they accidentally reveal their bias. Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Not the New York Post and not the Washington Times The New York Times (!!!) criticized John Kerry’s demagoguery on gas prices today: Senator John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, knows this [releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve won’t bring down gas prices], of course, and he demeans the seriousness of his own candidacy when he suggests that President Bush could single-handedly bring down fuel costs. Senator Kerry has urged the administration to stop buying oil for the reserve, as if that would make a difference. Fortunately, some residue of shame has kept him from joining the other Democrats calling for the reserve to be raided.Now I have to stick my head out the window to see if the sky is green and the grass is blue. (And I’m not in Kentucky.) Catching up on things - I've been out all day so that I could see my son perform "Splish Splash" at his elementary school. A glass-half-empty resolution on judicial nominees From the WashPost - President, Senate reach pact on judicial nominees: “The White House pledged yesterday that President Bush will not bypass the Senate in appointing federal judges for the next eight months as part of a bipartisan deal to break a seven-week impasse over votes on Bush's judicial nominees.” In exchange for allowing votes on 25 “non-controversial” nominees, Bush agrees not to make recess appointments. I agree with NRO’s Jonathan Adler: this strikes me as a minor defeat for the White House. Yes, more Bush-nominated judges will gain the federal bench, but it seems like a capitulation to the fact that the President is supposed to have the right to shape the federal judiciary. Well get a move on! - “Nader is not yet on any state ballot.” It’s the strangest thing, though. In polls, when Nader is left off the list of choices, it almost never translates to an advantage to Kerry. So he may not help Bush, but it’s sure fun watching him drive the Kerry people up the wall. More DNC convention woes Another day, another portent of disaster for the Democratic National Convention - "Police plan to broaden convention picketing" Boston's main police union is planning to set up a picket line at the FleetCenter when construction begins for the Democratic National Convention in three weeks, and has applied for 29 additional permits to protest outside of the delegation welcome parties scheduled for the night before the convention begins in late July.When the police picket, who holds them back? Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Wishful Thinking Watch: “Iraq War Weakens Bond Between Bush, Evangelicals” Oh please. Yeah, instead of running to the polls on election day, they’ll merely walk. Quickly. Bitter has the latest Vast Right Wing Conspiracy theory. Now the Republicans are fixing votes to embarrass John Kerry. And it’s working! Flip-flop du jour Today's humorous headline: "Kerry chides Bush over record high gas prices" I can only assume that Senator Splunge was criticizing Bush because gas prices aren't nearly high enough: DEMOCRATIC presidential candidate John Kerry is stepping gingerly away from a proposal he floated several years ago to raise the federal gasoline tax by 50 cents. With average prices at the pump spiking at $1.73 per gallon and President Bush mocking the idea at campaign rallies, Kerry has been quick to note that he never voted for any such tax and upon reflection thinks it is a bad idea.Yes, yes, it's a terrible idea during an election year! Splunge! New York, London, Paris, Madrid – everybody talk about Olympics! Pop pop pop pop shoo-pop. (Sorry – couldn’t resist. Munich was not on the list) College professors – liberal? No! In my senior year at Rutgers, I took a class on World War II taught by a half-crazed history professor who literally spent the first twenty minutes of every class inveighing against George Bush Sr. and Desert Shield/Storm. After the 100-hour land war, he showed up Monday morning and simply said: “I guess everything worked out” then never spoke of it again. That is a true story. So this story in the Boston Globe doesn’t surprise me: “Professors back Kerry with campaign giving.” But what’s this towards the bottom? Despite Kerry's edge in the higher-education competition, Bush enjoys a huge lead over the Massachusetts senator in overall fund-raising, $185.1 million, compared with $79 million through March. The incumbent holds a commanding lead in every other major industry, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.Yes, but Kerry has the Berkeley English department behind him. Monday, May 17, 2004
Just wait a moment Everybody but everybody is talking about the chemical agents that may or may not have been found in Iraq. Please read this over and over: However, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said the results were from a field test, which can be imperfect, and said more analysis was needed. If confirmed, it would be the first finding of a banned weapon upon which the United States based its case for war.Not to be pessimistic, but I have a gut feeling that this is going to amount to nothing (e.g. not really chemicals or old lost shells from the Iran-Iraq war). I'd love to be proven wrong. We'll see. Can you feel the enthusiasm? A continuing series From the Boston Globe, here’s Jimmy Hoffa on Senator J. Francois Kerry: The Teamsters president, James Hoffa, told reporters afterward, ''He's OK on trade, he's going to be fine on trade, he understands the issue.”Damning with faint praise, that. Why am I not surprised? From the Independent (UK): “Saudi Royal Guards ‘aided Al Qaeda’ in Riyadh bombins that left 35 dead” Paging Dr. DB Well, the good doctor is in Peru right now, but if he were here, I’m sure he’d have something to say about this story: “Premiums rising 11% for doctors” The largest malpractice insurer in Massachusetts will raise doctors' premiums 11 percent on July 1, angering physicians who said the growing premiums are driving their colleagues out of the profession, out-of-state, or to give up certain high-risk procedures.The Democrats have blocked tort reform because it cuts into the income of their favorite special-interest group: the trial lawyers. Interesting graph on Silent Running: Security Fence construction in Israel vs. suicide attacks thwarted Pictures of Alex / make my life so wonderful [apologies to the Who] Here’s how Mickey Kaus sums up the Alexandra Kerry in a see-through dress brouhaha: “Hello? Do Americans want a first daughter who parades around in a dress Paris Hilton would be embarrassed to wear?” Corollary question: do Americans want a first daughter named “Alexandra?” I know this is small potatoes in the grand scheme, but doesn’t this mini-controversy stir up all the salacious imagery of the Clinton years? Remember, Al Gore famously blamed Clinton’s lasciviousness on the loss of religious voters, especially in Tennessee and Arkansas. As Mickey also notes: “I guess Kerry really is writing off the South!” With the dysfunctional family that is the Democratic Party gathering together in Boston in July, this seems appropriate. Kerry Vote Watch You would have thought that after the embarrassment of missing the vote to extend unemployment benefits that Senator Splunge would have seen the error of his ways. Maybe he would show up for work a couple of days. Or maybe he’d do the right thing and resign his Senate seat so that Massachusetts could have adequate representation. Nope. There were nine floor votes in the Senate last week – Kerry missed ‘em all. Days worked: 3 Voting percentage = 14/94 = 15% Sunday, May 16, 2004
Smoot-Hawley redux From Fox News: Kerry: I’ll toughen trade deals. Choice quote: “But Kerry has a nuanced position on trade.”Why is it the position of Democrats that, whatever problems there may be in trade, they can be solved with more regulation? (And I’ll admit in the interest of fairness that Bush’s tariffs on steel imports did nothing to help the American steel industry.) Leave capitalistic free trade alone already. Geez. Wow – Michigan too? The Hedgehog Report has the numbers showing Bush up by 4%. Now if we can just get Ohio back in line. |