Major endorsements: Des Moines Register says Clinton & McCain; Boston Globe picks Obama & McCain

Big night for long awaited endorsements.

The Des Moines Register: Why Clinton; Why McCain

The Boston Globe: For the Democrats: Barack Obama; For the Republicans: John McCain Read More......

Open thread

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Huckabee set DWI donor free

We now have a trend. Let this man be their nominee. I can only dream of the protests that we can plan, starting with rape victims, murder victims, and mothers of kids killed by drunk drivers.

From MSNBC:

Questions are being raised about then-Gov. Huckabee's 2004 decision to grant clemency to a repeat Driving While Intoxicated offender in Arkansas named Eugene Fields, despite the objections of a law enforcement official at the time. Documents obtained by NBC News reveal Fields' case was handled differently from any other DWI clemency or pardon granted by Huckabee, and some Republicans are now suggesting significant political contributions may have influenced the governor's decision...

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Christian fundamentalist & creationist murders evolutionist after drunken debate

The religion of peace, as Fox News might say.

A bizarre row about evolution versus creationism led to an English backpacker fatally stabbing a Scottish backpacker during a fruit-picking trip to earn money for their travels.

Alexander York, 33, from Essex, was sentenced to a maximum of five years in jail yesterday for the manslaughter of Rudi Boa, 28, a biomedical student from Inverness.

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Huckabee: "A wife is to submit graciously to the servant leadership of her husband"

Who needs the Taliban when Mike Huckabee is around?

In June 1998, the Southern Baptist convention amended its official statement of beliefs for the first time in 35 years to declare that "a wife is to submit graciously to the servant leadership of her husband." And Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist minister then serving as governor of Arkansas, signed a full-page ad in USA Today in support of the statement (along with 129 other evangelical leaders).

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Two more rats fleeing the Bush/Cheney ship. But we're still stuck with Bush & Cheney

From AP. If only the two people in the picture matched the departures mentioned in the article's title -- instead of making us wait til January 20, 2009:
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Saturday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

Check out the poem of the week, I, Too, Sing America, by Langston Hughes. Great read -- and stark reminder -- as we approach the beginning of the actual voting for our next President.

Let's get it started... Read More......

Europeans shop for bargains in NYC

The Bush "strong dollar" policy has made shopping trips to America all the rage across Europe. With the dollar hitting lows not seen since the Nixon years, Europeans are flying to the US for weekend shopping trips in "cheap" places such as New York City. Travelers who normally could not afford to visit the US are now arriving in droves, much like Americans who would fly to Mexico on a cheap holiday.

During my own recent trip to the US, this was the talk on the flight. While shopping, store clerks confirmed the high number of Europeans stocking up on just about everything. (I was however shocked at the emptiness of stores and malls. I expected long lines, but never waited myself, though a few clerks told me that lines were terrible last Saturday.) In the near term, shopping binges by Europeans might help fill in the gaps though long term, the pitifully weak dollar is going to be disruptive both for Americans as well as Europeans and the world. Balance may not be in fashion with this administration, but we need to move back in that direction soon. Read More......

Senate gives gift to everyone who bought a bad loan

For every fool who didn't jump into the shoddy loan business, you get coal in your stocking. Whether we're talking handouts to the wealthiest and big business or loans to people who fell for get rich quick schemes in real estate, I've had it. Congress ought to start thinking about all of the schmucks in the middle who are paying for this stupidity. They're the ones paying for the war, the tax cuts and now the subprime bailout. The schmucks in the middle also ought to take a long look at who they are voting for and why, while they are at it. Neither party looks very appealing. Read More......

Bush on economy: "I just want to let you know we've got a strategy"

Leave. It. Alone. Don't mess with it and make it worse. The funniest part is when he delivered his money line, expecting his normal sheep to clap, they stayed quiet.

"The most negative thing Congress can do in the face of economic uncertainty is to raise taxes on the American people," Bush said.

The audience of roughly 80 people listened to Bush with respectful silence. Yet a line that normally gets him applause — "I'll veto any tax increase" — drew no reaction at all.

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Open thread

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