Palin on her phone call from the president of France (that was actually a prank)

An excerpt from Sarah Palin's new book. Oh God, she just keeps on giving:

By that time I'd received calls from presidents of other countries and our own, and had met elder statesmen and other dignitaries, so it didn't surprise us too much that we'd be speaking with the French leader.

He's got to be drunk, I thought.

I didn't want to offend the president of France, but this was getting stupid. I kept thinking, surely, someone will pop up and say something like, "Okay, the five minutes are up," but the call just went on and on and on. By now, I was thinking exit strategy. And I kept trying to laugh, even though it was increasingly unfunny.

Right away, the phones started ringing. One of the first calls was Schmidt, and the force of his screaming blew my hair back. "How can anyone be so stupid?! Why would the president of France call a vice presidential candidate a few days out?!"

Good question, I thought. Weren't you the ones who set this up?"

And here's the discussion:

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Taylor Marsh joins Don't Ask Don't Give, for women's rights too

We've written a number of posts in the past few days about how the administration, and the party, is now abandoning women along with gays (along with unions, and civil liberties, and immigrants, and lots more). Taylor Marsh wrote yesterday about why she's joining our Don't Ask Don't Give campaign to suspend donations to the party until they keep their promises to the gay communities, but as Taylor points out, and we have too, it's really about every community of the Democratic base. I've just bought the URL DontAskDontGive.com (no apostrophes) for our campaign, so you can link to it for the future. Read the rest of this post...

Madoff's computer programmers arrested

It's obvious that a scandal of this size could not have been done without many people being deeply involved. Cheating so many out of billions required a lot of coordination so there are bound to be more arrests. MSNBC.com:

The FBI arrested Jerome O'Hara, 46, and George Perez, 43, at their homes on Friday morning on criminal charges of conspiracy for falsifying books and records at both the broker-dealer and investment arms of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS) in New York.

"The computer codes and random algorithms they allegedly designed served to deceive investors and regulators and concealed Madoff's crimes," said federal prosecutor Preet Bharara. "They have been charged for their roles in Madoff's epic fraud, and the investigation remains ongoing."

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China arrests dissidents before Obama arrives

The Olympics changed everything. How about a big round of applause for the IOC. Oh that's right, they already patted themselves on the back despite no sign of change.

China has detained several dissidents and campaigners ahead of US President Barack Obama's much-anticipated first visit to the country, their relatives and close contacts told AFP Saturday.

Obama arrives in Shanghai on Sunday and moves onto Beijing the next day for a four-day maiden presidential trip during which he has been urged to raise human rights with the Asian giant's top leadership.

But as the visit drew close, the head of an activist group for parents whose children were sickened by tainted milk in China had been detained, his wife told AFP.

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Remi Gaillard Elevator sketches

Something very light after a long week in Berlin. The week started off wet but nice as I joined the party near the Brandenburg Gate which was really something, even with the umbrellas and rain. I was about 30 feet from Lech Wałęsa and the dominos though I could only see him due to the umbrellas.

Unfortunately I arrived back home yesterday to discover my friend, former roommate and colleague at two startups died from a massive heart attack. Niko was a young guy (41) and left behind a wife and two adorable little kids who are both under ten. He tends to come through Paris around this time of the year from LA to visit his family back in Thessaloniki, Greece so I was getting ready to check in and see about his travel plans. He was always a nice guy who would have a laugh with people. Niko also had an appreciation for good food so we always worked that into our meetings. What a terrible loss. Read the rest of this post...

The Missouri edition of the GOP Civil War is causing problems for Roy Blunt

Congressman Roy Blunt is the anointed candidate for the GOP Senate nomination in 2010. But, there's lots of rumbling about him in his home state. We already know the teabaggers are keeping an eye on Blunt. The latest example is from Blunt's meeting with some St. Louis County Republicans:

For 90 minutes, U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt -- the best-known Missouri Republican running for the U.S. Senate -- underwent an aggressive grilling Thursday night from the suburban party activists who he acknowledged he'll need to win next year.

In return, he sought to sell himself as a tight-fisted conservative with modest roots and broad experience.

His standing-room-only audience at Chesterfield City Hall of the West County Republicans group included a sizable number who made clear -- although generally (but not always) politely -- that they weren't necessarily buying Blunt's pitch.

They think Roy has gone Washington. And, that whole thing about Blunt cheating on his wife with a lobbyist, then divorcing his wife to marry the lobbyist reinforces that image. Here's a video and, remember, these are Republicans giving him a hard time:
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Saturday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

Remember how health insurance reform was going to be wrapped up before the August recess? We're halfway through November and the Senate hasn't even produced its bill. Every day that goes by increases the pressure to just pass "something." Rahm Emanuel and Jim Messina let Max Baucus and the Blue Dogs slow down the whole process over the summer and into the fall. Now, we're going to see Senators and House members start panicking -- and I do mean panicking -- about their reelection. Let's see how that impacts not only health insurance reform, but the rest of the progressive agenda.

But, the news isn't all dour. Chris Bowers compiled a list of "Friday Night Smiles." The post made me chuckle on a Saturday morning. Here's a particularly good one:

Larry Sabato on twitter:

If Sarah Palin is the 2012 GOP nominee for President, the Republican party platform will be the longest suicide note ever written.

Have at it.... Read the rest of this post...

British Scouts chant 'kill the Jews" during parade

This is sick, especially during a war Remembrance Day parade. Let's hope talking with the rabbi and opening a book or two helps wake them up. The Guardian:

Dressed in full uniform, the explorer scouts, who were taking part in Remembrance Sunday service in Romford, Essex were heard to repeatedly shout "Let's kill the Jews" at Jewish second world war veterans.

The head of the scouts in the area has issued a full apology for the incident, which was witnessed by a senior policeman standing a few feet away.

A Metropolitan police spokesman said the Met was investigating two allegations of "racially aggravated harassment" involving more than one member of the Romford explorer scout unit. He would not say how many scouts were involved.

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Massachusetts principal bans students from saying "meep"

First they came for the Muppets... Read the rest of this post...