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I am not a Republican, and I am not a racist.  I will be voting for Cynthia McKinney for president.  So don’t threaten me with your post-partisan, post-racial, manipulative, coercive hate mail.

Wrapped in the Flag

Paulson Bailout Plan a Historic Swindle (by William Greider, The Nation)
Financial-market wise guys, who had been seized with fear, are suddenly drunk with hope. They are rallying explosively because they think they have successfully stampeded Washington into accepting theWall Street Journal solution to the crisis: dump it all on the taxpayers. That is the meaning of the massive bailout Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has shopped around Congress. It would relieve the major banks and investment firms of their mountainous rotten assets and make the public swallow their losses–many hundreds of billions, maybe much more. What’s not to like if you are a financial titan threatened with extinction?

If Wall Street gets away with this, it will represent an historic swindle of the American public–all sugar for the villains, lasting pain and damage for the victims. My advice to Washington politicians: Stop, take a deep breath and examine what you are being told to do by so-called “responsible opinion.” If this deal succeeds, I predict it will become a transforming event in American politics–exposing the deep deformities in our democracy and launching a tidal wave of righteous anger and popular rebellion. As I have been saying for several months, this crisis has the potential to bring down one or both political parties, take your choice.
Well, Bill, sadly for us liberals, in the Democratic primary your magazine backed Barack Obama, who is the most accommodationist of Democrats.  What will the Democrats do in this crisis?  Practically nothing, and claim it’s a great success.  One of the most supposedly liberal publications in the country will have helped it to happen.  And if you’re looking to Main Street for that “tidal wave of righteous anger”, don’t expect it to be leveled at the people who deserve the anger.  See below.

Almost 50 years of right-wing propaganda has been an enormous success:
A Sense of Resentment on Main Street (Washington Post)
The bailout doesn’t smell right to the people of Manassas Park, where the foreclosure signs are as common as azaleas. They know all about bad debt here. This is a terrain of oversize dreams, misjudgment, financial calamity — and empty houses. “Foreclosure. Foreclosure. Foreclosure,” said Ed Merkle, 58, as he pointed to the “for sale” signs lining his street… “I’ve been financially responsible with my own money. Why should I now be responsible for the fact that you were not?” he said.

This may be a Main Street bailout backlash in the making. The details of the financial crisis are still hard for most people to follow — what with talk of exotic “derivatives” known as “credit-default swaps” and so on — but the central fact of the matter hasn’t been lost on anyone in this Northern Virginia community: The taxpayers are on the hook for the bad judgment of others.
Whose bad judgment are we really dealing with?  Those who made tons of money by lending to people who are bad credit risks, that’s who, and those who aided and abetted them by creating and selling the aforementioned “exotic derivatives”.  But who gets blamed?  Not the Masters of the Universe who created the mess, oh no!  IT’S POOR PEOPLE’S FAULT!  So sayeth the Washington Post.

Do you understand the significance of that misdirection?  It means we may never reach a critical mass of people so fed up with the so-called leaders who got us into this that we FIRE their asses.

McCain calls for limit on pay to CEOs of failed Wall St. firms; Obama lays out six reform principles (On Politics, USA Today)
The major presidential contenders continue to talk about the nation’s financial crisis and the rescue plan being put together in Washington:

• Republican nominee John McCain just told a crowd in Scranton, Pa., that he is “greatly concerned that the plan gives a single individual (the Treasury secretary) the unprecedented power to spend $1 trillion without any meaningful accountability…” McCain also said called for “a high level oversight board to impose accountability and establish concrete criteria for who gets help and who does not.” And, he said “the firms we help need accountability too.  We cannot have taxpayers footing the bill for bloated golden parachutes like we see in the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, where the top executives are asking for $2.5 billion in bonuses after they ran the company into the ground.  The senior executives of any firm that is bailed out by treasury should not be making more than the highest paid government official.”

• Democratic nominee Barack Obama, his campaign says in a statement sent to reporters, will today “deliver a major policy address to lay out his plan to reform the greed and excesses of Washington so that we never face an economic crisis like this again.” He’s due to deliver the speech in Green Bay, Wis., around mid-day. Update at 12:50 p.m. ET. In his speech, Obama outlines six principles for reform.
Click through to read the six principles.  Here we are once again, with McCain sounding action oriented and Obama sounding process oriented.

Last Year’s Big Five Wall Street Bonuses (by Jake Tapper at Political Punch, ABC News)
As the Bush Administration asks for close to a trillion dollars to prevent a worldwide financial cataclysm, here are some numbers you might find interesting — courtesy of the ABC News Research Center and ABC News’ Barbara Paulson. In 2007, Wall Street’s five biggest firms– Bear Stearns, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley -   paid a record $39 billion in bonuses to themselves. That’s $10 billion more than the $29 billion loan taxpayers are making to J.P. Morgan to save Bear Stearns. Those 2007 bonuses were paid even though the shareholders in those firms last year collectively lost about $74 billion in stock declines –their worst year since 2002.

Paulson plan: Retroactive immunity for Wall Street (by lambert at Corrente)
Thank The God(ess)(e)(s) Of Your Choice for McClatchy: “The administration’s draft law also would preclude court review of steps Paulson might take [clause 9], something Joshua Rosner, managing director of economic researcher Graham Fisher & Co. in New York, said could be used to mask previous illegal activity. ‘The Treasury’s ability to, without oversight, determine (that) a financial institution (is) an agent of the government seems like it could be used to serve several purposes, including limiting the potential liabilities of an institution or its executives,’ he wrote in a note to investors late Sunday.”… So, what that means is that even the foolish “executive compensation” talking point is a mask over the ulcer: The real issue is executive jail time.

Only One Winner, and Only One Loser (by Arthur Silber at the Power of Narrative)
The ruling class is the only winner in this crisis, and you, the “ordinary” American without wealth, power or influence, are the big loser. You are in the process of receiving the biggest screwing of your life… I remind you of what I wrote at the beginning of this week… “…All of the solons who led us into this abyss of mounting debt, worthless securities, failing financial institutions, economic contraction and collapse … and all the rest, will now instruct us as to how we should ‘solve’ the crisis that they have created… [W]hatever ‘solutions’ are implemented, whatever reorganization and reregulation is imposed, it will all be done in accordance with the ruling class’s desires and goals. It will all be to protect their own wealth and power to whatever extent is possible, and to expand their wealth and power still more.”

The complete (though ever-changing) elite consensus over the financial collapse (by Glenn Greenwald at Unclaimed Territory, Salon)
I don’t pretend to know anywhere near enough — in terms of either raw information or expertise — in order to opine on the necessity or lack thereof of The Latest Plan in terms of whether the alternatives are worse. But what I do know is that an injustice so grave and extreme that it defies words is taking place; that the greatest beneficiaries are those who are most culpable; and that the same hopelessly broken and deeply rotted institutions and elite class that gave rise to all of this (and so much more) are the very ones that are — yet again — being blindly entrusted to solve this.

A $1.8 Trillion Bailout: Where the Money’s Going (On Politics, USA Today)
The U.S. Treasury Department is working through the weekend with Congress to craft a plan to spend as much as $700 billion to absorb bad mortgages and other assets from bank or other institution balance sheets to keep the financial system from collapsing. The move comes close on the heels of an $85 billion Federal Reserve rescue of American International Group and the Treasury’s takeover of housing finance firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Treasury plan, which follows a new federal guarantee for money market fund holdings, would push Washington’s potential bailout tab to $1.8 trillion.

Cash for Trash (by Paul Krugman)
Some skeptics are calling Henry Paulson’s $700 billion rescue plan for the U.S. financial system “cash for trash.” Others are calling the proposed legislation the Authorization for Use of Financial Force, after the Authorization for Use of Military Force, the infamous bill that gave the Bush administration the green light to invade Iraq. [Emphasis added.] There’s justice in the gibes. Everyone agrees that something major must be done. But Mr. Paulson is demanding extraordinary power for himself — and for his successor — to deploy taxpayers’ money on behalf of a plan that, as far as I can see, doesn’t make sense…

Mr. Paulson insists that he wants a “clean” plan. “Clean,” in this context, means a taxpayer-financed bailout with no strings attached — no quid pro quo on the part of those being bailed out. Why is that a good thing? Add to this the fact that Mr. Paulson is also demanding dictatorial authority, plus immunity from review “by any court of law or any administrative agency,” and this adds up to an unacceptable proposal… I’d urge Congress to pause for a minute, take a deep breath, and try to seriously rework the structure of the plan, making it a plan that addresses the real problem. Don’t let yourself be railroaded — if this plan goes through in anything like its current form, we’ll all be very sorry in the not-too-distant future.

Stupider than Shit (by Arthur Silber at the Power of Narrative)
The Bush administration is not genuinely intelligent by any measure, but these criminals are shrewder than hell. Why do you think they made the initial proposal in the extreme form they did? Because they know that if they finally give the Democrats a few “safeguards,” if they “attach a few strings,” and perhaps if they allow for “independent oversight,” the Democrats will give them the momentous bailout they want — all to be paid for by American taxpayers for the next hundred years (assuming the U.S. survives in any recognizable form, which becomes more doubtful by the hour).

The Democrats have already announced to the world that is exactly what they’ll do. The Democrats, liberals and progressives fall right into the trap, as they do every single fucking time. At this point, does anyone believe “strings” or “oversight” are worth a goddamned thing?… In brief: the Bush administration will get exactly what it wanted all along.

Stupider than shit. That’s an insult to shit.

Not So Fast, Nancy (by paradox at The Left Coaster)
As a general rule anything Congress produces fast and on the fly is terrible legislation. As the Patriot Act so aptly demonstrates, out of nowhere vast powers and discretion were handed over without any deliberative thought or legislative processes at all… The whole political and ideological structure of conservatism lies in total ruins before us. Vast amounts of money and policy are at stake in somehow trying to clean up the incredible stinking mess, yet Bush and the Republicans are demanding all of the money to let their market philosophy off the hook without any new rules or safeguards in place, just hand over all of the dough now.
We had a candidate who told us back in March 2007 that we’d better be preparing for this day. And the party leaders you disparage, paradox, helped to push her out of the race.

Another Letter (by Susie at Suburban Guerrilla)
To Matt Stoller from an anonymous congressman: “Here’s the industry’s play: progressives will approach Nancy with ideas for reform, and she’ll agree to push for their proposals, and she’ll really mean it. Then industry lobbyists will go to Dennis Moore, Melissa Bean and a few other Democrats, and tell them how dire the consequences of the proposals would be, and that the members who understand how the economy works need to step up to stop Nancy and the crazy liberals from doing something rash…

The only way, our leadership will conclude, to get anything at all passed is to include nothing more than the inconsequential proposals that … lobbyists agreed to. Then we’ll all go along because it would be wildly irresponsible not to act when we’re staring over the brink of a complete collapse of world financial markets… The only defense for the play is for a significant group of Democrats to say they won’t vote for any proposal that isn’t unpalatable to industry, and mean it. It’s a pretty high stakes game of chicken, but otherwise we come out of this with nothing but a $700 billion giveaway to a crooked industry.”

The Moment for Leadership is Here, Obama (by chicago dyke at Corrente)
So chatting it up with some insider types, this is what I’ve been told: Obama has the opportunity, right now, to act and determine the future re: this bailout stuff. If he goes along with the current plan, I’m told Senate Dems will follow along; if he doesn’t they won’t either. It’s more than obvious to anyone reading this blog that the current plan is little more than giving free money to the very people who fucked everything up in the first place and sticking taxpayers with the bill. It’s really that simple, and no amount of propaganda is going to change that… This is a much more crucial moment than perhaps many realize, and it’s important for Obama to live up to this first, critically important test as head of the Democratic party. Just say no, Mr. Obama. No.

Obama calls bailout a ‘blank check’ (Politico)
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) heaped criticism Sunday on President Bush’s mortgage-bailout blueprint, calling it a “blank check” for the administration and Wall Street with insufficient safeguards for taxpayers and homeowners.

Democrats Set Bailout Conditions (New York Times)
WASHINGTON — Congressional Democrats began to set their own terms on Sunday for a plan to rescue the nation’s financial institutions, including greater legislative oversight of the Treasury Department, more direct assistance for homeowners and limits on the pay of top executives whose firms seek help. The Democrats’ demands came as Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. blanketed the Sunday talk shows to promote the Bush administration’s $700 billion bailout package, emphasizing that it was needed not just for Wall Street, but for all Americans. He urged Congress to move swiftly to approve a “clean” rescue plan without tacking on extra programs.
But will Democrats stick with even the little bit they’re asking for, as Republicans stomp their feet and hold their breath?

GOP warns Dems not to add extras to bailout bill
Republican leaders in Congress are warning Democrats not to load up the Treasury Department’s emergency bailout bill with help for homeowners or others facing economic hardship – all while avoiding a direct endorsement of the bill themselves… Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who is up for reelection in November, said the Treasury’s $700 billion bailout plan must not become a vehicle for “partisan plans and pet projects” if it is to receive congressional approval next week.

McCain or Obama — who bears responsibility for the crisis? (by Joseph Cannon at Cannonfire)
John McCain on the Senate floor, May 25, 2006: “… I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.”

Barack Obama voted against the legislation. Barack Obama — in the Senate for mere months — quickly became the number 2 recipient of contributions from Fannie Mae.

Illiquidity and Insolvency (by Mark Thoma at Economist’s View)
I say (1) get rid of the toxic stuff, that helps the liquidity problems and gets credit markets moving again (they froze up severely after Lehman was allowed to collapse, that was a mistake), (2) add additional capital to help with solvency, this is extra insurance in case freeing up credit markets by solving the liquidity problem isn’t enough by itself, and (3) give taxpayers a stake in all of this for their troubles. The exact form of that stake isn’t as important as the fact that they have one.

As Lambert at Corrente would say, “And we get?”
What Wall Street Should Be Required to Do, to Get A Blank Check From Taxpayers (by Robert Reich)
My five nominees:

1. The government (i.e. taxpayers) gets an equity stake in every Wall Street financial company proportional to the amount of bad debt that company shoves onto the public. So when and if Wall Street shares rise, taxpayers are rewarded for accepting so much risk. 

2. Wall Street executives and directors of Wall Street firms relinquish their current stock options and this year’s other forms of compensation, and agree to future compensation linked to a rolling five-year average of firm profitability. Why should taxpayers feather their already amply-feathered nests?

3. All Wall Street executives immediately cease making campaign contributions to any candidate for public office in this election cycle or next, all Wall Street PACs be closed, and Wall Street lobbyists curtail their activities unless specifically asked for information by policymakers. Why should taxpayers finance Wall Street’s outsized political power – especially when that power is being exercised to get favorable terms from taxpayers?

4. Wall Street firms agree to comply with new regulations over disclosure, capital requirements, conflicts of interest, and market manipulation. The regulations will emerge in ninety days from a bi-partisan working group, to be convened immediately. After all, inadequate regulation and lack of oversight got us into this mess. 

5. Wall Street agrees to give bankruptcy judges the authority to modify the terms of primary mortgages, so homeowners have a fighting chance to keep their homes. Why should distressed homeowners lose their homes when Wall Streeters receive taxpayer money that helps them keep their fancy ones?

Why You Should Hate the Treasury Bailout Proposal
[F]rom a reader by e-mail: “I worked at [Wall Street firm you've heard of], but now I handle financial services for [a Congressman], and I was on the conference call that Paulson, Bernanke and the House Democratic Leadership held for all the members [last week]… I wanted to let you know that, behind closed doors, Paulson … explicitly says that [the bailout plan] will buy assets at above market prices…

“I don’t think that our leadership has been very good during this negotiation (or really, during any showdowns with this administration) at forcing the administration to own their position. If Paulson wants this plan, then he needs to sell it to the public, and if he sells a different plan to the public (the nonsense buying-at-market-price plan) then we should pass that. I’d rather see the government act as a market maker for the assets to get them transferred over to private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds and other willing holders. And if we need to recapitalize these companies, it seems like the cheapest way for the taxpayer is to go in and buy up the distressed debt and then convert that to equity.”…

[H]istorically, financial system rescues have involved seizing the troubled institutions and guaranteeing their debts; only after that did the government try to repackage and sell their assets. The feds took over S&Ls first, protecting their depositors, then transferred their bad assets to the RTC… The Treasury plan, by contrast, looks like an attempt to restore confidence in the financial system — that is, convince creditors of troubled institutions that everything’s OK — simply by buying assets off these institutions. This will only work if the prices Treasury pays are much higher than current market prices…, in effect throwing taxpayers’ money at the financial world.

And there’s no quid pro quo here — nothing that gives taxpayers a stake in the upside, nothing that ensures that the money is used to stabilize the system rather than reward the undeserving.

Not necessarily practicing what you used to preach … (by Brad Setser at Follow The Money, Council on Foreign Relations)
Back in 1998, after Asia experienced a systemic banking crisis, the United States led a series of international working groups to develop best practices for handling future crises. One of the working group — the second working group — developed principles for managing a systemic banking crisis. The group’s recommendations included: “Bank owners (holders of bank equity) should not be bailed out. They should lose their investments when banks are given public support, or their investment should be diluted through sales of equity (or some convertible instrument) to a government agency, which is then in a position to benefit and recover cots if the institution’s conditions improves.”

Responsibility For Thee But Not For Me (by Susie at Suburban Guerrilla)
Funny, how the same institutions that so recently successfully argued that unemployed Americans or those crippled by medical expenses should “face the music” and be denied the protection of the bankruptcy courts are now expecting the paycheck class to bail them out! Hey, no harm, no foul!

Who you gonna call?  Debt Busters?
Treasury Proposes to Have Wall St. Manage Bad Debt (CNBC)
Wall Street is being called upon to manage its own mortgage mess. As part of the government bailout of the financial industry, the Treasury has floated a plan with industry executives that envisions the $700 billion in bad mortgage debts being bought by the government will be run by five to ten outside asset managers, CNBC has learned. These managers will each run portfolios of up to $50 billion each, according to a source familiar with the plan… It was unclear how the Treasury would handle the problem of asset managers who might hold or otherwise have been invovled in the mortgage mess and whether those running the assets could bid for them.

Can you trust a Wall Street veteran with a Wall Street bailout? (McClatchy)
WASHINGTON — Making the rounds on the Sunday morning talk shows, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson repeatedly said today’s financial problems were long in the making. He should know. He was part of the Gold Rush that has brought the global financial system to the brink of collapse. Paulson presided over one of the most profitable runs on Wall Street as chairman and chief executive officer of investment banking titan Goldman Sachs & Co. from 1999 until President Bush nominated him on May 30, 2006 to take over the Treasury Department… But with Paulson now seeking virtually unfettered authority to administer the largest bailout of the financial industry in U.S. history, many are wondering whether Paulson also doesn’t come with enormous potential conflicts of interest.

For Japan, Economic Hope in Wall St. Bailout (Washington Post)
TOKYO, Sept. 22 — Washington’s bailout of Wall Street may also help bail out Japan, a nation hobbled by aimless leadership, punishing public debt, a dwindling workforce and growing weakness in the exports that power the world’s second-largest economy.

Open Thread (by Mary at The Left Coaster)
When Paulson’s “plan” came out this weekend, many thought, “Gosh, this is really bad. How could it be worse?” Well, with lobbyists working overtime this weekend, we find that the updated version is even worse. Phil Gramm (the guy who McCain wants to name the next Secretary of the Treasury) was able to get the bailout plan to rescue his personal foreign bank: UBS… [Emphasis added.] It was the UBS connection that made Phil Gramm toxic to the McCain campaign, at least publicly. Obviously, the guy who brought the US Enron, is now bringing the US the son of Enron, guaranteed to make your life worse. Aren’t you happy to see the gang in Washington watching out for their base?
Hey, who else can we bail out?  Oh, *I* know, how about the AUTO INDUSTRY?

Auto industry to press Congress for $50B in loans (Detroit News)
Auto industry allies hope to secure up to $50 billion in government loans this month that would pay to modernize plants and help struggling carmakers build more fuel-efficient vehicles… The situation is growing dire after months of tumbling sales, high gasoline prices and consumers’ abandoning profitable trucks and sport utility vehicles.
Of course, that was earlier in the month, but hey, now might be the best time to ask.  Demand, even.  It’s another emergency!

Consumers unlikely to start spending again soon (McClatchy)
WASHINGTON — While Friday’s flurry of regulatory rescue actions on Wall Street should help loosen the ever-tightening restrictions on consumer credit, don’t expect American families to rush in and take on much new debt.
It’s consumer spending that drives the economy, friends.  So what’s being done for us ordinary folks, while all these big shots get their bailouts?

A Worker Bailout Fund? (by Mark Thoma at Economist’s View)
In response to the financial crisis, as we help firms that are deemed too big and too interconnected to fail, hundreds of billions of dollars are being tossed around as though it is mere pennies. Since it is widely expected that the crisis will get worse before it gets better, and since there is a non-trivial chance of a substantial uptick in unemployment, shouldn’t we begin thinking about a worker bailout fund? Or are workers too little to be helped?

I don’t think so. So instead of waiting until unemployment goes way up, and then watching Congress fight over what to do about it while people struggle to make ends meet, let’s get a plan in place now that dedicates some of the money being tossed around to helping workers. If unemployment goes up, what will we do? How will we help? If we are going to bail out the big players – take toxic paper off their hands – there’s no reason at all not to bail out workers too.

Naomi Klein saves the day on Real Time: Andrew Sullivan has no clue (by John Amato at Crooks and Liars)
It’s so chic of conservatives like Sullivan to blame the American people for the economic crisis, because as Sullivan stated on Real Time, millions and millions of people took out loans on homes that they couldn’t afford. Yes, the Kudlow Thesis of the market housing crisis. Don’t blame the lenders and grifters that came upon us like a biblical plague of locusts, blame the  people.

Naomi Klein, God love her, told him that it was the Wall Street profiteers that preyed upon society. His ideal conservative world is completely fictional. And as she says, what comes next is the real disaster. Today was Christmas morning to the fat cats on The Street, but what happens next to all the debt we the people have just incurred? Whoever is elected president will have a major role in deciding our fate.
Need I remind readers that Andrew Sullivan is an Obama fan?  Click through to watch the video. 

Obama cult poster… (by J -SOM at Liberal Rapture

My candidate, myself (by Robert Burton, Salon)
Last week, I jokingly asked a health club acquaintance whether he would change his mind about his choice for president if presented with sufficient facts that contradicted his present beliefs. He responded with utter confidence. “Absolutely not,” he said. “No new facts will change my mind because I know that these facts are correct.” I was floored. In his brief rebuttal, he blindly demonstrated overconfidence in his own ideas and the inability to consider how new facts might alter a presently cherished opinion… And yet, if we, as a country, truly want change, we must be open-minded, flexible and willing to revise our opinions when new evidence warrants it. Most important, we must be able to recognize and acknowledge when we are wrong…

As I have pointed out in my recent book, ”On Being Certain,” feelings of conviction, certainty and other similar states of “knowing what we know” may feel like logical conclusions, but are in fact involuntary mental sensations that function independently of reason… Just as it’s nearly impossible to reason with someone who’s enraged and combative, refuting or diminishing one’s sense of certainty is extraordinarily difficult. Certainty is neither created by nor dispelled by reason.
Burton goes on to say that he would like to see the candidates for president tested to see how well they use rational processes for decision making rather than feelings.  I, on the other hand, would prefer to see VOTERS tested that way.  See below.

The mush brain Obama has caused on the Left. (by J –SOM at Liberal Rapture)
I find it alarming and fascinating that – after 10 months – I have yet to meet an ardent Obama supporter who can – even for a moment – see their own hypocrisy. The FISA flip flop is excused – along with all the other major flip flops… But Palin is an evil, dumb bitch…Obama is wise and true… They are cock sure about Obama. Cock sure about Palin. Cock sure they are right about everything, and yet never examine anything. Concerns and questions are not allowed. These people scare me more than the far Right nut jobs – precisely because the far Right is acting on some core principle – however distasteful I may find it. No such principle is at play with the PODS. They follow without question – all the while pretending to be rational.

Is This What Passes for Liberal Discussion and Humor These Days? (by SusanUnPC at No Quarter)
At a friend’s tonight, I watched part of a recording of the September 12th HBO show, “Real Time with Bill Maher.” I’m in shock. This is what these television personalities think and say, and feel it’s perfectly alright to express? Things like this about Sarah Palin?… “Did you see the [interview with Charlie Gibson]? I am officially frightened.” … “Charlie Gibson asked her if she’s ready to be vice president or president. She said, ‘I’m ready’. And a bell went off, and she said, ‘Ohhh, and so’s my pie’.”… “She thought the Bush Doctrine had something to do with forbidding her daughters to shave down there.”

Saturday: Women Swiftboating Sarah (by riverdaughter at The Confluence)
[S]ome of the commentary about Sarah that goes on in workplaces and supermarkets and on TV isn’t funny anymore. Remember what the meme was back when Hillary was running?  “I don’t have anything against a woman running for president.  Just not *this* woman.”  And now I’m hearing the same thing said about Sarah.  “I don’t have anything against a woman for VP.  But why does she have to be someone like Sarah?”… [According to the Palin haters,] what kind of woman would qualify for President or VP?  She’d have to be:

• not too pretty
• not overtly religious
• not a suburban SUV mom
• not too fertile
• a senator
• well travelled
• confused about nothing
• pro-choice

She’d have to be someone like…

Nahhh, any woman but her…

Hillary gets warm welcome in Pikeville (Kentucky State News, thanks to Alegre)
PIKEVILLE – She’s now called the “adopted daughter of Kentucky,” and 350 of her eastern Kentucky admirers turned out to hear Hillary Clinton stump for Bruce Lunsford Saturday morning at the Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport. She turned heads and touted the candidacy of Lunsford, Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate who is trying to unseat four-term incumbent Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell…Rather than asking themselves who they are for, Clinton said, voters should ask “who is for me? Who is for me and my family, my community, my schools, my job in the coal mines, my veterans, my young people serving in the military right now?”
Gee, who might that be?  Who ON EARTH might that be?  The only candidate for president I can think of who is for me is Cynthia McKinney, running with the Green Party.

A gutter lack of integrity (by J –SOM at Liberal Rapture)
A reader sent my this tidbit from Down Under: “Bill Clinton likes Palin’s instincts.” The President was referring to her political instincts noting that she was an effective politician and should not be underestimated. He spoke about the sitting, elected, Governor of Alaska with respect – which is ,not doubt, why he is so hated by PODS… Obama is not trustworthy. The evidence is in and is overwhelming. What Obama says and what Obama does are at odds on nearly every major issue. From Iraq, to Nafta, to Public Financing, to FISA he has demonstrated an utter lack of integrity. Maybe I should say a gutter lack of integrity.

Political Investment (by Anglachel)
The current meme running around Left Blogistan that the entire mortgage crisis and the resulting meltdown we are now enduring is because Clinton sided with the Republicans to destroy the FDR era Glass-Steagall Act…The point is not that it was a good or bad act for Clinton to sign. [Click through to read a contemporary account showing how Clinton resisted, but was abandoned by conservative Democrats.] (After all, one of its authors is the enthusiastic Obama-supporting Republicans, Jim Leach. Repeat – GLBA was written by an Obama supporter.) The point is that the obsession with assigning all blame for Democratic failures, real or imagined, to Bill Clinton is a political failure that continues to pay dividends to the Right.

Now is the time to be piling this stuff right on top of the Republicans, making it crystal clear that this shitpile is one of their making, crafted by them, overseen by them, encouraged by them, and now to be owned by them. You won’t do that by remaining invested in seeing Bill Clinton as the primary point of failure of Democratic policy and politics, and relegate the rest of the political actors, especially the opposition, into minor roles. Do you really want to be arguing, this close to the election, that the mortgage meltdown is the Democrats’ fault?

Sunday: Highly Ineffective Obamaphiles (by riverdaughter at The Confluence)
Lea Lane at Huffington Post is worried. [On Saturday], she tried to offer some advice to her fellow Obamaphiles that should have been titled, How to talk to Clintonistas (if you must) but which was posted in disguise as Eat Crow?  Hell Yes to Win this Election.  She is concerned that in your PUMA anger and “confusion” about the election, you will without thinking, condemn her to a wiki page cautionary tale of a failed movement. You may unknowingly prove to be her worst enemy by voting against your own interests. It troubles her…

Here’s the message I would like to communicate to Lea and her ilk:  You guys are fu@%ed.  Big time.  We’ve heard all your stupid hypocritical arguments on sexism and Roe.  We know you have no respect for Hillary or the process. We are determined to stop Obama and his corrupt Chicago Machine in its tracks.  Wake up and smell the Starbucks, Lea.  If you want to win us back, grovel.  Get down on your knees and beg forgiveness.  Promise that you’ll haul Howard Dean’s ass back to Vermont.  Get Obama to apologize profusely for the caucus fraud and the sexism and the accusations of racism and the delegate manipulation at the convention.  We want the satisfaction of seeing him admit that our votes matter to him.

“Eat crow”? Eat THIS. (by Joseph Cannon at Cannonfire)
The writer offers these suggestions to her fellow bots: “Praise HRC. Never mention her flaws. Be gracious and do not bring up her vote for the war, or her “dirty campaign.” Do not allude to Bill. Instead, try to find something you can praise with some conviction.” Her flaws? In politics, as Martin Anderson liked to say, the question is always “Compared to what?” Compared to Obama — a crooked pol from Chicago who lies incessantly… Hillary ran a dirty campaign? My god, these Obots are so entrenched in their private universe that they no longer recognize reality. Barack Obama ran, is running, the filthiest campaign in the history of the Democratic party.

I consider Kos and HuffPo to be arms of the Obama campaign. Obama used those conduits to fill the net with the most disgusting lies in recent American campaign history: The “darkened video” smear, the “Bill’s a racist” smear, the RFK smear, the outrageous NAFTA smear. Obama said nothing when Keith Olbermann called for Hillary’s murder — and Obama’s silence on that score equals approval. The Obots incessantly told all Hillary supporters to get out of the party. Obama rigged the caucus votes and denied revotes in Michigan and Florida. And his vile supporters continue to spew death threats at anyone who won’t vote as they command.

“Do not allude to Bill.” These Obot fools still act as though Bill Clinton — the man who gave us eight years of peace and prosperity, the man who turned a sea of red ink black — is some sort of liability. In their sick alternative reality, they consider Bill Clinton the crazy uncle in the attic who must never be mentioned.

Poll: Racial views steer some white Dems away from Obama (by Ron Fournier and Trevor Thompson, AP)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Deep-seated racial misgivings could cost Barack Obama the White House if the election is close, according to an AP-Yahoo News poll that found one-third of white Democrats harbor negative views toward blacks — many calling them “lazy,” “violent,” responsible for their own troubles. The poll, conducted with Stanford University, suggests that the percentage of voters who may turn away from Obama because of his race could easily be larger than the final difference between the candidates in 2004 — about two and one-half percentage points.

The Racist Blame Begins. Before he’s even lost (by NewHampster at Alegre’s Corner)
When will someone do a study of the real reasons so many of us distrust his lying ass?  When will they call and ask me about my absolute distaste for one who’s only real concern is himself?… Oh but of course I know the real reason for a study like this now.  It is to play the race card.  To once more tickle white guilt and see if a few more dems won’t vote for The One™ just so they can be sure not to feel guilty like the rest of us poor racist trash.
Actually, Ron Fournier is a McCain guy.  I’m not sure what his motivation was in commissioning and releasing this study.

Scaring Seniors (FactCheck.org)
An Obama-Biden ad says McCain supports “cutting benefits in half” for Social Security recipients. False!

On Taxes, Obama Faces Air Assault (Political Punch, ABC News)
[Saturday] afternoon, as Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., addressed a rally in Jacksonville, Fla., a small airplane flew overhead pulling a banner that read, “Raising taxes is not patriotic.” The banner was in reference to comments made by Sen. Joe Biden.

McCain: I’m glad I deregulated Wall Street. (Think Progress)
In the wake of last week’s financial meltdown, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has been calling for more regulation and criticizing lax oversight of Wall Street, despite the fact that he and former senator Phil Gramm passed much of the deregulatory reforms that led to the current crisis. Interviewed on CBS today, however, McCain said he does not “regret” championing the deregulation of Wall Street: “Q: In 1999, you were one of the senators who helped pass deregulation of Wall Street. Do you regret that now? McCAIN: No. I think the deregulation was probably helpful to the growth of our economy.”
Click through to watch the video

‘Always for Less Regulation’? (Washington Post)
One element of the Obama campaign’s brief against Mr. McCain is that he supported repeal of the law separating commercial banks from investment banks. “He’s spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions instead of their customers,” Mr. Obama said [Thursday]. “Phil Gramm, one of the architects of the deregulation in Washington that led directly to this mess on Wall Street, is also the architect of John McCain’s economic plan.” Would it be churlish to point out that another author of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley law is former congressman Jim Leach, a founder of Republicans for Obama? Or that Obama advisers Lawrence H. Summers and Robert E. Rubin supported the repeal — which was signed by President Bill Clinton?

It’s a reasonable question which candidate has been more attentive to the brewing problems on Wall Street and which has a better prescription for them. But Mr. Obama’s attack does not give a fair reading of the McCain record.

McCain Wants Cuomo at SEC (by Jake Tapper at Political Punch, ABC News)
“If you wanna fire Chris Cox, the chairman of the SEC,” asked Scott Pelley on “60 Minutes” tonight, “who would you replace him with?” “This may sound a little unusual, but I’ve admired Andrew Cuomo,” responded Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., referring to the New York State attorney general. “I think he is somebody who could restore some credibility, lend some bipartisanship to this effort.” “He’s a Democrat,” Pelley pointed out. “Oh, yes,” said McCain. “He served in the cabinet of President Clinton,” said Pelley. “Yes,” said McCain. “And he did a good job. And he has respect. And he has prestige.”

FORMER CLINTON STAFFERS JUMP TO MCCAIN (First Read, MSNBC)
Former Hillary Clinton campaign staffers charged Obama with being too inexperienced for the presidency, shifting their support to McCain, on a conference call sponsored by the McCain campaign Friday afternoon. “Obama really doesn’t have the experience,” said Miguel Lausell, senior national political advisor to Hillary Clinton. “We don’t know what he’s going to be doing. We don’t really know where he’s coming from, and that’s the big difference.” Luchy Secaira, former Sen. Hillary Clinton Delegate-at-Large, said that stance on women’s issues is all talk and no action. Secaira said that Obama’s rhetoric on the Equal Pay Act is not backed up with hiring practices in his Senate office.

Lifetime Poll: Palin Helps McCain with Women (Political Wire)
A new Lifetime Television poll finds the selection of Gov. Sarah Palin as Sen. John McCain’s running mate “has greatly increased the GOP ticket’s appeal to women.” Key finding: McCain-Palin holds a 44% to 42% lead over Obama-Biden on who has a “better understanding of women and what is important” to them. Obama held a 52% to 18% lead on the question in July. “Breaking it down further, age was biggest determining factor. Young women, ages 18-34, chose the Democratic ticket as being more empathetic to their needs, while women aged 35-64 went for the McCain-Palin ticket.”

Palin Continues to Attract Large Crowds (Political Wire)
Gov. Sarah Palin drew a crowd of nearly 60,000 people to a rally she held in the battleground state of Florida, according to the Fort Myers News-Press. “Admiring throngs mobbed the Palin family’s arrival and departure, snapping souvenir pictures. Autograph seekers thrust campaign signs, caps with the McCain-Palin logo and copies of magazines with her face on their covers, and the Palins responded warmly.”

Palin Wins Concessions for Veep Debate (Political Wire)
“The Obama and McCain campaigns have agreed to an unusual free-flowing format for the three televised presidential debates, which begin on Friday, but the McCain camp fought for and won a much more structured approach for the questioning at the vice-presidential debate,” according to the New York Times. “At the insistence of the McCain campaign,” the Oct. 2 debate between Sarah Palin and Joe Biden “will have shorter question-and-answer segments than those for the presidential nominees… There will also be much less opportunity for free-wheeling, direct exchanges between the running mates.”

Subpoenaed witnesses fail to show for Troopergate hearing
A state Senate committee convened Friday to take testimony from witnesses facing subpoenas to tell what they know about the Troopergate affair, but none showed up – including Gov. Sarah Palin’s husband, Todd.

Early Voting Begins in Some States (Political Wire)
There are 42 days until the presidential election but some people have already voted. According to USA Today, “voters by the thousands will begin casting ballots for president this week in an early voting process that’s expected to set records this year… Residents of Virginia, Kentucky and Georgia are among the first in the nation eligible to vote in person, as well as by mail. During the next few weeks, at least 34 states and the District of Columbia will allow early in-person voting for Nov. 4 elections.”

Ala. GOP pressure ends prisoner registration drive
Alabama Prisons Commissioner Richard Allen stopped a voter registration drive for inmates Thursday under pressure from the Alabama Republican Party. In a letter to state Republican Party Chairman Mike Hubbard, Allen said individuals conducting the program “were not doing anything for the inmates that they could not do themselves by simply contacting the Secretary of State’s Office for the voter registration postcard.”

Charges Dropped Against Reporters Arrested At RNC (by Cernig at Crooks and Liars)
Charges are being dropped against over two dozen journalists, including Amy Goodman and her two producers, arrested during the crackdown on protests at the Republican convention in St. Paul. Goodman’s charge of “obstructing the legal process” has been dropped, as have felony riot charges against her colleagues Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Other dropped charges are mainly for “unlawful assembly”.