Non Party Politics

Pennsylvania Political Primaries

It’s less than twenty-four hours until the polling places open in Pennsylvania.

With massive ad expenditures, Barack Obama has tried to bring this primary season to a close by preventing Hillary Clinton from a runaway, double-digit victory that was forecast sometime in the past. We will see if the money spent on ads paid off for Obama by tomorrow evening.

If Clinton wins big (say by double-digits) and racks up many more delegates, then her campaign is still viable and the Dems are headed for a brokered convention. If Obama pulls neck-and-neck with her in what was supposed a be a sure victory for the Clinton campaign, then Hillary will be limping away, even if she does continue her campaign.

 There have been so many newsworthy quotes from BOTH candidates that, in spite of Zogby polls and others, no one really knows what the turnout or the results will be. With all the negative campaigning that has been going on on BOTH sides (Yes, BOTH sides), it will all probably boil down to who the voters decide to believe.

Are Pennsylvanians so bitter, that they must cling to their guns or religion? Are they bitter period? Do they resent the implications of those words? Will they overcome their bitterness enough to vote for “change”?

I guess we’ll know the answers to those questions at the close of polls tomorrow.

How Much Are Our Politics About Comfort?

I was reading a rather interesting post this morning about American’s feelings towards China, in view of the recent Tibetan confrontations. As I read the article and the comments by other readers, I really started to think (even though it’s the weekend).

The way I see it, Americans seem to want to focus on the human rights, health, etc. etc. etc. issues in other countries, rather than looking at what we need to straighten-out here at home, because no real action is required on our part. We’re really a naive bunch, when you think about it.

Human rights violations in China, Tibet, Darfur are unpleasant to think about, so let’s claim to be offended and then continue on our merry way, gathering-up quarters from the sofa pillows to buy gasoline to go to the store to buy the cheapest products we can find. Survival first!

I think most Americans are unaware of the real risks this country faces. At a time when we should be solidarizing and strengthening internally, we are being torn apart by bipartisan politics and finger-pointing from within.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from my observations of the political decisions made by ANY administration, it’s that we are schitzophrenic. We want every country around the world to do things our way but we can’t agree among ourselves what OUR WAY should be.

Furthermore, our dependence on foreign oil will keep us from confronting evils, unless pushed into a corner, or turning a blind eye towards how much the USA is hated among certain populations.

But even more frightening is that our dependence on foreign money will shackle us to those very countries we claim are such abusers. The average American has NO concept of the amount of Chinese money invested in the USA. They could easily pull the rug out from underneath us, with one hand tied behind their back.

This sword they have hanging over our head is possibly one reason that Bush will be the first U.S. president to attend the Olympics when it is being held anyplace other than on USA soil (in spite of the fact that Nancy Pelosi and Hillary Clinton are asking him to boycott the opening ceremonies, to protest the China-Tibet ‘thingy’).

With Chindia (China/India) poised to take over the economic reins of the world, most Americans have no concept of how powerful China is. We will never invade China. Let’s hope they don’t decide to invade us.

The Democratic Race Oozes On

Last night’s Democratic Presidential debate in Philadelphia was the first televised debate after the ’stumbling and mumbling, mistakes and misspeaks’ of the last two months.

Hillary Clinton’s supporters felt that she made the most points, while Barack Obama’s supporters were irritated that the anchors kept bringing up trivial issues from the past. Those “trivial issues”, like Jeremiah Wright’s ravings and small town America’s bitter clinging to guns and religion, were explained-away by Obama as simple misunderstandings, taken out of context. But NOT so trivial to some voters.

When his relationship with William Ayers of the Weather Underground was mentioned, Obama quickly scoffed at the question, stating that he was eight years old when he knew him. Clinton just happened to mention that Obama had served on a committee with Ayers. So, who’s “misspeaking” here?

This is the longest presidential campaign within my very long memory. I think people want the Democrats to decide one way or another and get on with it to November. But that is unlikely in this never-ending quest for delegates.

This extremely long campaign season is bringing new items to our attention on a daily, or at least weekly, basis. But will anyone remember, or even care, by the time the election rolls around?

With so much speaking-out-of-both-sides-of-the-mouth going on, how are we to know what the candidates believe or what they stand for? Are Clinton or Obama for-or-against gun control of the weapons we are so bitterly clinging to? Where do they stand on illegal immigration? On God? On Pro-Life or Pro-Choice? The War in Iraq? And the myriad other ‘little issues’ that the middle class is so desperately and bitterly focusing on?

Will Obama meet with Ahmadinejad? How does he feel about Carter’s visit to Palestine? Will Hillary ever get enough sleep to speak truthfully? And when am I going to get my prescriptions and my doctor’s visits for FREE?

Next Tuesday will be the Pennsylvania primaries, so we should get a little excitement seeing who does what! Then it’s only two weeks more until Indiana and North Carolina. By then we should have some idea of whether the Dems will be hosting a brokered convention, or whether Al Gore will be the nominee.

I Wanna Work for the Government

My husband and I need more credit cards, but I want the kind that someone else pays for. If I hurry and get a job with the government, maybe I can get one of those credit cards that government employees are using to buy all those necessities of life, like say. . .”$640,000 from 2000 to 2006 to a live-in boyfriend, who used the money for gambling, car expenses and mortgage payments.”

Now before you get all huffy, let me explain.

I am very happily married, so I wouldn’t give the money to a live-in boyfriend. No sir! All of my credit card charges would go to benefit my husband, who would NEVER use the money for gambling.

Since we live pretty frugally, I would spend the money wisely. Yes, it would be important to purchase an iPod, and perhaps a Mac Air laptop, and a couple of cell phones, but then everybody needs those, right? And, of course, if the government trusted me with my very own credit card (that they paid the bills for) I would purchase things that would boost the economy. None of that fancy lingerie stuff, after all, I’m a great-grandmother. But a few days at a spa might be good for me and it would be the least I can do to help circulate the wealth.

I also promise not to “charge $1,100 over a 15-month period for “various online dating services” while . . . under investigation for viewing pornography on a government computer.” I don’t even like pornography, so why would I waste the government’s money on it? And, as I mentioned earlier, my husband is the only dating service I need.

Since I like to cook, and I enjoy family and friend get-togethers, I wouldn’t have to spend “$13,500 in 2006 on a dinner at a steak house, including over 200 appetizers and over $3,000 of alcohol”. Heavens! With that kind of money, I could feed my entire little town several times over AND have enough money left over to buy all my Christmas presents early. Although, the idea of going to Sam’s or Costco and buying all those ready-made “ore durvs” would certainly make entertaining festive and easier.

Well, there’s probably no point in applying for a government job now. The ‘cat is out of the bag’ and the Government Accountability Office has already discovered the widespread abuse of those credit cards, with over half of the expenditures being suspicious.

Guess I have to pay for my own credit cards. Sigh!

Wait a minute! This scandal means that we the taxpayers are stuck paying for those misused cards. GRRR!

Democrat Shoots Self in Foot!

Well, as if the campaign trail for the Democrats wasn’t already littered with bodies who’ve created embarrassments to their respective candidates, another biggie has been added to the list.

Yesterday, Mark Penn, former chief strategist for Hillary Clinton, stepped aside from his role. He will remain as an “advisor”.

Hillary’s campaign manager Maggie Williams issued a statement Sunday saying the action comes after what she referred to as “the events of the last few days” and added that Penn will continue to provide polling and advice for the campaign.

So what did Penn do to embarrass his candidate? Well, first you have to understand that Penn has other jobs besides Hillary. Penn is CEO of public relations giant Burson-Marsteller. He is also president of his own political consulting firm, Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates.

In his capacity as CEO of Burston-Marsteller, Penn acknowledged Friday that he had met with the Colombian ambassador to the United States earlier in the week to discuss the pending U.S. and Colombia trade pact, that President Bush is trying to finalize.

There’s a bit of an uproar over this, because as part of her campaign, Clinton has stated that she’s opposed to the trade agreement. OOPS!

Seems that Penn further screwed himself by announcing that the meeting was “an error in judgment that will not be repeated,” and apologized. That prompted Columbia’s government to fire Burson-Marsteller on Saturday, stating that the remarks demonstrated ”a lack of respect to Colombians.”

Poor Mark Penn! I thought people in public relations were supposed to be tactful. Guess not! Think this might hurt his image in the PR field?

Well, Penn may continue as an advisor, but Clinton’s campaign is trying to distance from the entire fiasco, as quickly as possible. This is especially important, as Clinton has criticized Barack Obama for supposed leaks to the Canadians by his campaign that he is not as opposed to NAFTA as he has stated during the campaign.

Campaign backers agreed Sunday that Penn had to go. Maggie Williams immediately informed the media of the decision and stated that Geoff Garin and Howard Wolfson “will coordinate the campaign’s strategic message team going forward.”

Not a good week for Mark Penn. Not too great for Hillary either during the countdown to the Pennsylvania primary, as this may reflect poorly on her ability to select teammates, something she has criticized both President Bush and Barack Obama about. DARN!