Month: September 2008

John Judis sees what’s coming:

At the convention, there are rumblings about Palin from moderates and from conservative intellectuals like David Frum and Ramesh Ponnuru, but most of the delegates remain enthusiastic. Like Norquist, they reject the questions raised about Palin as attempts by “the left to destroy her.” And they are convinced these attacks will strengthen the McCain ticket. Like the passengers on Titanic, they celebrate, while the iceberg of doubt called up by her nomination looms on the horizon.

Former US Senator and presidential candidate Fred Thompson speaks about presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain, seen on a giant screen in the background as a wounded soldier, during the Republican National Convention at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, on September 2, 2008. By Paul J. Richards/Getty.

She cut funding for a group that helps teen mothers.

God bless Youtube.

The techniques described in detail by Fred Thompson – another person who avoided the word "torture" – are exactly the torture techniques authorized by Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. I’m not sure whether avoiding the t-word is deliberate. I’m just as unsure whether either Bush or Thompson got the irony.

A phone-in. I have to say I find the excuse that he couldn’t be in Minneapolis because he was coordinating Gustav to be a little hard to believe. I found the reference to the "angry left" to be unpresidential, but, hey, this was a guy who joked about not finding WMDs. And I’m trying to get a transcript, but was I wrong to notice that Bush did not use the word "torture" to describe McCain’s treatment. I think he called it "beatings and isolation."

That was Laura, just now. Was Bill Clinton president on September 11, 2001?

God bless Levi’s mom:

"This is out of my league," Sherry Johnston said. "I’m just a country gal, and I want to keep it that way."

The vetting continues:

Palin’s pastor, Larry Kroon, introduced [David] Brickner, [the founder of Jews for Jesus] on Aug. 17, according to a transcript of the sermon on the church’s website. “He’s a leader of Jews for Jesus, a ministry that is out on the leading edge in a pressing, demanding area of witnessing and evangelism,” Kroon said.

Brickner then explained that Jesus and his disciples were themselves Jewish.

“The Jewish community, in particular, has a difficult time understanding this reality,” he said.

"This election is not about issues. This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates," – Rick Davis, McCain Campaign Manager.