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August 02, 2008

Herbert's Hissy Fit

Bob Herbert is not happy:

Gee, I wonder why, if you have a black man running for high public office — say, Barack Obama or Harold Ford — the opposition feels compelled to run low-life political ads featuring tacky, sexually provocative white women who have no connection whatsoever to the black male candidates.

In addition to being unhappy, Herbert's also a purposefully dishonest hack—Harold Ford was linked to "tacky, sexually provocative white women" because he infamously attended a Playboy Superbowl Party, as Accuracy in Media hammered home:

He [Ford] was at an event where scantily-clad women were featured attractions. How can a Democrat, a member of a political party that caters to feminists, defend that?

Would it have been accurate to depict the Playboy-type model in the ad as black? Anybody who takes a passing glance at Playboy knows that the vast majority of the "models"―the Playmates or Playboy Bunnies―are white. By chance, I was flipping through my cable channels the other night and came upon a show on the E! channel titled "The Girls Next Door," featuring Playboy founder Hugh Hefner and his current crop of Playboy "girlfriends." All of his girlfriends are white. A quick visit to the Playboy website finds no black models at all.

So an ad featuring a white and blonde Playboy-like floozy, saying, "I met Harold at the Playboy party," is quite accurate, regardless of whether Ford is black or white. But desperate pro-Democratic Party liberal media figures want to find something despicable in a commercial that is based on a simple truth.

Likewise, it is a simple truth that like Britney Spears or Paris Hilton, Barack Obama is famous primarily for being famous.

During his short time as a state legislator in Illinois, he accomplished very little of note and arguably less than many of his state office peers. Not even through his first term as a U.S. Senator, Obama is running for President based upon even less. He has not been able to establish himself as anything other than a Senate backbencher, has pushed through no bills of national significance, failed at consensus building, and has proven to be unwilling or unable to reach across the aisle to build bi-partisan support.

Like Britney Spears, Obama is great on stage, and a trainwreck of non-stop gaffes when left unattended by handlers. Like Paris Hilton, Barack Obama is famous, but no one can precisely explain why he is famous. He has risen to astronomical heights based on "buzz" instead of accomplishments, and if he falls in November, is likely to never be heard from again.

He is nothing more or less than a political pop star.

Bob Herbert, of course, doesn't want to admit this fact. Like so many who have peddled to Obama's defense, his greatest fear is that Barack Obama might be judged by the content of his character... or his lack thereof.

Posted by Confederate Yankee at August 2, 2008 12:56 PM
Comments

In Barry's favor, he doesn't lip synch on stage like Brit Brit :)

Funny how Herbert does not trash Obama for his portrayal of McCain as old and senile, ie, ageism.

Posted by: William Teach at August 2, 2008 02:46 PM

John McCain and his supporters are starting to sound like a spotty high school loser writing furious screeds against the popular kids. "they think they're so smart, they think they're so cute..." Bitterness and jealousy aren't going to win this election for you.

Posted by: The Needle at August 2, 2008 02:55 PM

I guess that I have been alseep at the wheel, because I have yet to see one single speech from Barry that impresses or inspires me at all. Why do so many keep saying that he is a great orator, when there is absolutely no evidence of that in my opinion?

When I listen to Barry's speeches, I am continuously reminded of that sing-song, talking down to kindergarteners voice from Al Gore. Nixon was a better speech-maker than Barry.

Have we become so stupid as to think that Barry is uplifting or inspiring in the least? If so, that is a demand that we immediately shut down all of the government schools, because we have become a nation of morons.

Posted by: Two Dogs at August 2, 2008 03:01 PM

Really, Needle? I don't know what McCain supporters sound like. I'm not one, myself.

What I do know is that Obama is a manifestly empty candidate, and it makes McCain better in comparison. What you don't seem to grasp with your high school loser analogy (one I assume you have some familiarity with) is that we aren't electing a superficial, responsibility-free homecoming queen, but a President. Substance counts, and Obama simply doesn't have any.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at August 2, 2008 03:05 PM

If substance ever counted, the current empty suit that sits in the White House would never have gotten elected.

Posted by: The Needle at August 2, 2008 03:23 PM

And if the Harold Ford ad had depicted a black woman in that way, we would have heard that it was racist because... it demeaned black women as intellectually vapid sexual playthings!

But to be fair, I suppose that the McCain ad could have included Nicole Richie as a "famous for being famous" accomplishment-free floozie.

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at August 2, 2008 03:52 PM

Nevertheless, it’s frustrating to watch John McCain calling out Barack Obama on race. Senator Obama has spoken more honestly and thoughtfully about race than any other politician in many years. Senator McCain is the head of a party that has viciously exploited race for political gain for decades.

Couldn't have been said more succinctly...

If you want to see what a real "hissy fit" looks like, study the whining from your corner of the blogosphere on the media coverage of McCain prior to this last week.

Posted by: Frederick at August 2, 2008 03:55 PM

OK, I'll bite: how has the Republican party exploited race for decades? I'm talking to you, Frederick.

Posted by: ECM at August 2, 2008 04:12 PM
If substance ever counted, the current empty suit that sits in the White House would never have gotten elected.

An excellent case in point, Needle.

George W. Bush was a highly effective and well-like governor of Texas with an excellent reputation for being able to effectively run a government with broad bi-partisan support. He had excellent connections and long-term relationships with political experts, and the rare benefit of having a father who was Vice President and President.

If Bush has made such a mess of things considering his resume, how bad will a candidate with no executive experience and a mediocre level of performance in every office he's ever had be?

Barack Obama has under-performed at every job he's ever had since leaving college. I don't think we can risk giving him the most important job in the world as his first chance to get something right.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at August 2, 2008 04:52 PM

From Nixon's Southern Strategy through Reagan's Southern Strategy, redistricting and,
“If Obama Is President…Will We Still Call It The White House?” The pattern is pretty established. You're not biting, you're baiting.

Posted by: Frederick at August 2, 2008 04:56 PM
If substance ever counted, the current empty suit that sits in the White House would never have gotten elected.

Al Gore and John Kerry lost, Needle.

Posted by: William Teach at August 2, 2008 05:06 PM

George W. Bush was a highly effective and well-like governor of Texas with an excellent reputation for being able to effectively run a government with broad bi-partisan support.

Ah, so getting taken in by the whole "Obama's Blog Burning!" nonsense wasn't just a fluke. You really WILL believe anything.

Posted by: The Needle at August 2, 2008 05:11 PM

Hey, Needle... tell me, does Harvard really give out MBAs like Cracker Jack prizes?

I really want to know, because, you know, the current occupant of the Oval Office has one.

So, either the "empty suit" charge against Dubya is wrong, or Harvard is nothing more than a diploma factory for the rich and powerful... like, say, Michael Bloomberg (Mayor of NYC), Rep. Chet Edwards (D-TX), Steve Grossman (former head of the DNC), Eugenio Lopez III (Chairman and CEO of ABC), John Lynch (D-Governor of NH), Ann S. Moore (Chairman and CEO of Time), the late Senator William Proxmire (D-WI), former Senator Donald Riegle (D-MI), Mark Walsh (former CEO of Air America Radio), and many others.

So, are ALL those people empty suits, or does a Harvard MBA really mean something, Needle?

Posted by: C-C-G at August 2, 2008 06:04 PM

The Current CinC is bi lingual
Obama tells others they need to make their Children Bilingual.
The Current CinC speak poorly from a telepromter, but eventually make his point.
Obama away from a telepromter can't make a point to save his life, and talks so poorly he makes the Current CinC sound facund, and when reading from it, makes...no points either. His speeches consist of platitudes and Marxist sayings. I wonder at them and can't believe no one has pointed this out to his speech writers.
The Current CinC once Piloted an evil fighter jet from Texas to Florida in a whited out cockpit while staring into an orange ball of radar to prove he was instrument rated. This was an aircraft noted for killing it's pilots at rates nearing combat casualties even in peace time.
Obama can't even air the tires on the bike he uses for Photo Ops.

Posted by: JP at August 2, 2008 06:29 PM

Al Gore and John Kerry lost, Needle.

Gore won.

Get over it.

Posted by: dave™© at August 2, 2008 07:30 PM

Famous for being Famous?

Well that's a stretch. Britney has put out albums and Paris is a model. And they are NOT world famous. Way to carry the water again...as long as that makes sense in your own mind...

So Obama has done nothing?

and McCain...go Wiki him, is famous for his gaffes as well as his mistakes. His claim to fame is a scandal (Keating Five)and a piece of legislation that he co-authored and is now shirking.

Every distraction always circles back to his utter ineptness as a politician...never mind the ineptness of his cadet-ship, scholarship and flying. Does mental capacity mean nothing to you people?

Posted by: Manamongst at August 2, 2008 07:31 PM

Fascinatingly enough, Dan Quale had more experience and better qualifications to be President than the Great Messiah of Peace and Hope does. Needle, since you feel that John McCain's qualifications don't count, will you prove your sincerity and support a write-in candidacy for Dan Quale as the most qualified man for the job?

Posted by: DaveP. at August 2, 2008 07:32 PM

Gore won!? So... all those newspaper recounts and eight years of history mean nothing to you?

Oh yeah; You're one of the "reality-based community".

So... "reality" is the new street slang for heroin, yes?

Posted by: DaveP. at August 2, 2008 07:34 PM

Seriously, he consistently paints himself into corners...

He knew why he put Paris in that commercial, to have a white girl juxtaposed with the non-white candidate. After pushback he had to bring her down...what has she ever done to him? Seriously...but to this knee-jerk idiot, everything Hollywood is to be hated or belittled...all the while her dad gives his candidacy and his party money...not to mention the Blackstone Group, who I am sure are having a word with him.

And while we're at it, he salivates all over people who are truely the personification of "famous for nothing" Heidi Montag...Ohhh but my bad, she's the one loser who will associate with his loser Lane Bryant model daughter. I mean can we be serious here...

Half the people on this blog detest McCain...you don't consider him a "true conservative" You've got to admit his lies aren't adding up, The things you called Kerry on for flip-flopping are now policy evolutions.

Just when we think YOU PEOPLE can not get anymore out of touch...YOU DO.

You all are just bad actors in a play that you think is better than it actually is.

Off topic can anyone tell me when was the last time a CONSERVATIVE invented anything. You know, if you're so proud of your inventors, where's your book chronicling this? That's right you're the one's who smash innovation until you can cash in on it. You stifle thought until you can understand it.

Right now, we're just waiting for your light bulbs to come on.

Thanks for playing.

Oh and yankee, it must truely be depressing to live life on the defense? This blogging thing has to get better than this right?

Posted by: Manamongst at August 2, 2008 07:47 PM

JP, I speak Spanish...and he is NOT I repeat NOT Bilingual.

He's as bilingul as he is unafraid of horses.

and an MBA isn't that tough, if you have an above average command of math, then it is attainable. Especially at a Harvard, when you have all resources (money) to get you tutors and help.

Lets try Harvard Law Review. Where your JUDGEMENT is on display 24/7 and easily reviewable now for your little eyes. Just try digging up ANYTHING GW wrote.

Posted by: Manamongst at August 2, 2008 07:51 PM

Dave P

Jimmy Carter had more experience than all of them...

perspective and stats are a bitch ain't they?

Posted by: Manamongst at August 2, 2008 07:53 PM

Lets try Harvard Law Review. Where your JUDGEMENT is on display 24/7 and easily reviewable now for your little eyes. Just try digging up ANYTHING GW wrote.

Actually, isn't Obama the only editor and president of the Review who never published any law articles during his tenure?

Posted by: toby928 at August 2, 2008 07:59 PM

John McCain and his supporters are starting to sound like a spotty high school loser writing furious screeds against the popular kids. "they think they're so smart, they think they're so cute..." Bitterness and jealousy aren't going to win this election for you.

Posted by The Needle

I was going to ask for the sarcasm tags, because that was a hoot, then I read Needle's other posts.

It was serious!

It's even funnier now.

Posted by: PETN Sandwich at August 2, 2008 08:03 PM

You can always tell when someone scores a point against the Obamamessiah; the Obamamaniacs come out of the woodwork to defend their Secular Savior by spewing venom everywhere.

Posted by: C-C-G at August 2, 2008 08:06 PM
Oh and yankee, it must truely be depressing to live life on the defense? This blogging thing has to get better than this right?

Funny you should mention that. You and some of your fellow commenters gave me a chuckle as I read (And had to delete some of) your comments. Reminded me of a song I heard on my way to a coaches meeting this morning.

At this stage of my blogging life, I expect to hear you frothing. I'm used to your side cursing, whining or mocking something that I said, or trying to take it out of context.

Bit dogs bark, Manamongst.

Thanks for dropping by to yelp.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at August 2, 2008 08:20 PM

Needle, and the other lost left wing souls on here. Bush has a degree from Harvard, also a degree from Yale. Evidently he made a fortune in the oil business, that is according to the poorly informed democrats. He also owned the Texas rangers (which he bought when he sold out of the oil business, years ago), was governor of Tx (elected twice) and POTUS, two terms.

That beats the resume of Hussein O, born half white/half Arab. Lies about his hertage and religion, has never accomplished one thing not involving friends involved in crime and/or terrorism. Total days worked in the Senate 143, (in over three years) Yet has the balls, or is that the low class upbringing, to accept a full time check, on the taxpayers.

Now lets have all of you lefties resume's. I'll do it for you. Grade school drop out, prison (two terms), drunk and drug addict, early death due to drug addiction. Total taxable earned income in lifetime $0. That covers 90% or more of the welfare riding democrats.

“…I will stand with them (Muslims) should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.” B Hussein Obama,

page 261 of his book, Audacity of Hope…


If you use his own words against him you are a racist. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Posted by: Scrapiron at August 2, 2008 09:24 PM

Wow just frigging wow. We have gone from talking on topic to people blaming everything that is bad on GW. You have got to be kidding me!

But in keeping with the thread.

Why should I vote for a man who has just slightly over a thousand hours in congress, who has thrown everyone who makes him look bad under the bus, who has written two racially charged books yet claims to transcend race, who had attended a racially charged church of 20 years, who can not speak to save his life unless he is behind a teleprompter, who can not debate against the most unarmed foe, who continually complains about people bringing his race into issue, but constantly does so when he feels it is in his best interest,,,,. How can I vote for someone who has so blatently disrespected our own constitution throughout his time in Congress? Please answer these questions, and change my mind.

I am an open minded individual, I really am. Respond to my post with honesty and convince me.

Why should I vote for this man?

Posted by: Matt at August 2, 2008 09:26 PM

Hussein O has a six pack but the little plastic thingy that holds it togather is missing.
Without a teleprompter he speaks worse than a 4th grade student who rides the short bus.

Posted by: Scrapiron at August 2, 2008 09:26 PM

Hey, Needle... tell me, does Harvard really give out MBAs like Cracker Jack prizes?

Well, Dubbya's professor at Harvard Business School had this to say about him:

"At first, I wondered, 'Who is this George Bush?' It's a very common name and I didn't know his background. And he was such a bad student that I asked him once how he got in. He said, 'My dad has good friends.'" Bush scored in the lowest 10 percent of the class.


And:


showed pathological lying habits and was in denial when challenged on his prejudices and biases. He would even deny saying something he just said 30 seconds ago. He was famous for that. Students jumped on him; I challenged him." When asked to explain a particular comment, said Tsurumi, Bush would respond, "Oh, I never said that."

So, if you're using the fact that W graduated from Harvard as a credential, I reckon you'd have to allow as how a teacher at that fine university had even greater credibility, no?

Posted by: The Needle at August 2, 2008 11:41 PM

Needle has a lot of he said, she said, and no facts. I ran into a lot of people like that when I served 6 years with a volunteer rescue squad. We took all of them to the local mental institution.
Not only is Hussein O an Islamist, he hates white people, including his mother and he is one lying POS.
In his own words:
Below are a few lines from Obama's books " his words:

From Dreams of My Father: "I ceased to advertise my mother's race at the age of 12 or 13, when I began to suspect that by doing so I was ingratiating myself to whites."

From Dreams of My Father : "I found a solace in nursing a pervasive sense of grievance and animosity against my mothers race."

From Dreams of My Father& lt; /I>: "There was something about him that made me wary, a little too sure of himself, maybe. And white."

From Dreams of My Father: ; "It remained necessary to prove which side you were on, to show your loyalty to the black masses, to strike out and name names."

From Dreams of My Father: "I never emulate white men and brown men whose fates didn't speak to my own. It was into my father's image, the black man, son of Africa , that I'd packed all the attributes I sought in myself, the attributes of Martin and Malcolm, DuBois and Mandela."

From Audacity of Hope: "I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction."

If the country wants change, change they will get with Obama !
But it may not be for the better !


“…I will stand with them (Muslims) should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.” B Hussein Obama,

page 261 of his book, Audacity of Hope…

Posted by: Scrapiron at August 3, 2008 12:11 AM

How does Herbert keep his job? He's about as insightful as a lump of clay. You could hire some hobo at Manpower for minimum wage who would do better.

Posted by: Purple Avenger at August 3, 2008 06:07 AM

Needle, I never said Dubya graduated at the top of his class. But a Harvard MBA, even one from the lower end of the class, is still, at the end of the day, a Harvard MBA.

Since you're so good at research, why don't ya take that list of names I gave you earlier and see how many of them graduated at the top of their class, and how many graduated at the bottom... and see if any of their teachers have ever said anything about them?

Oh, one more thing... you realize that by calling Dubya stupid, you're also calling all the Democrats in Congress even stupider, because Bush has won most of the confrontations with Congress... including keeping the War in Iraq going. The oh-so-intelligent Donkeys in Congress couldn't even find a way to stop this "empty suit" in the White House. Kinda makes your party look like the second half of Dumb and Dumber, doesn't it?

Posted by: C-C-G at August 3, 2008 08:41 AM

He is nothing more or less than a political pop star.

Ya right.....

Education
Undergraduate

Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA
Undergraduate, 1981-1983

Columbia University
B.A. Political Science with specialization in international relations
Thesis topic: Soviet nuclear disarmament
Graduate

Harvard Law School
J.D. magna cum laude 1988-1991

President, Harvard Law Review
Organizing

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1983-1988 Director of the Developing Communities Project (DCP), a church-based community organization originally comprising eight Catholic parishes in Greater Roseland on Chicago's South Side.

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1992 Led Chicago's Project Vote! push. This effort resulted in a record number of voter registrations, over 600,000 in Chicago. 1)

Teaching

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1993-2004 Visiting Law and Government Fellow, then Senior Lecturer, in Constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School.

Law Practice

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1993-2002 Worked as an associate attorney with Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland.

Illinois Senate 1996-2004

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chairman, Health and Human Services Committee

United States Senate 2004-present

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Member, Senate Foreign Relations Committee
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Chairman, Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs
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Member, Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
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Member, Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
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Member, Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Bills / Amendments Passed

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S.AMDT.1041 to S.1082 To improve the safety and efficacy of genetic tests.
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S.AMDT.3073 to H.R.1585 To provide for transparency and accountability in military and security contracting.
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S.AMDT.3078 to H.R.1585 Relating to administrative separations of members of the Armed Forces for personality disorder.
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S.AMDT.41 to S.1 To require lobbyists to disclose the candidates, leadership PACs, or political parties for whom they collect or arrange contributions, and the aggregate amount of the contributions collected or arranged.
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S.AMDT.524 to S.CON.RES.21 To provide $100 million for the Summer Term Education Program supporting summer learning opportunities for low-income students in the early grades to lessen summer learning losses that contribute to the achievement gaps separating low-income students from their middle-class peers.
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S.AMDT.599 to S.CON.RES.21 To add $200 million for Function 270 (Energy) for the demonstration and monitoring of carbon capture and sequestration technology by the Department of Energy.
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S.AMDT.905 to S.761 To require the Director of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Education to establish a program to recruit and provide mentors for women and underrepresented minorities who are interested in careers in mathematics, science, and engineering.
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S.AMDT.923 to S.761 To expand the pipeline of individuals entering the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields to support United States innovation and competitiveness.
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S.AMDT.924 to S.761 To establish summer term education programs.
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S.AMDT.2519 to H.R.2638 To provide that one of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5 million or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee certifies in writing to the agency awarding the contract or grant that the contractor or grantee owes no past due Federal tax liability.
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S.AMDT.2588 to H.R.976 To provide certain employment protections for family members who are caring for members of the Armed Forces recovering from illnesses and injuries incurred on active duty.
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S.AMDT.2658 to H.R.2642 To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.
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S.AMDT.2692 to H.R.2764 To require a comprehensive nuclear threat reduction and security plan.
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S.AMDT.2799 to H.R.3074 To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.
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S.AMDT.3137 to H.R.3222 To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.
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S.AMDT.3234 to H.R.3093 To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.
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S.AMDT.3331 to H.R.3043 To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.
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Senate Resolutions Passed:
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S.RES.133 : A resolution celebrating the life of Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson.
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S.RES.268 : A resolution designating July 12, 2007, as “National Summer Learning Day”.

Other Bills Introduced

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S.J.RES.23: A joint resolution clarifying that the use of force against Iran is not authorized by the Authorization for the Use of Military Force Against Iraq, any resolution previously adopted, or any other provision of law.
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S. 453: Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007. The Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2007 (H.R.1281), (S.453), would establish criminal penalties for acts of voter deception. Those who knowingly disseminate false information with the intention of keeping others from voting would face up to five years in prison under the legislation. The Act was sponsored by Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) and 60 cosponsors in the House, and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and 15 cosponsors in the Senate. (20 Cosponsors)
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S. 2030: A bill to amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require reporting relating to bundled contributions made by persons other than registered lobbyists. (1 Cosponsor)
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S. 2111: Positive Behavior for Effective Schools Act. A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow State educational agencies, local educational agencies, and schools to increase implementation of early intervention services, particularly school-wide positive behavior supports. (3 Cosponsors)
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S. 2066: Back to School: Improving Standards for Nutrition and Physical Education in Schools Act of 2007. A bill to establish nutrition and physical education standards for schools.
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S. Con. Res. 46: A concurrent resolution supporting the goals and ideals of Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month
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S. 2044: Independent Contractor Proper Classification Act of 2007. A bill to provide procedures for the proper classification of employees and independent contractors, and for other purposes. (6 Cosponsors)
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S. 2519: Contracting and Tax Accountability Act of 2007. A bill to prohibit the awarding of a contract or grant in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold unless the prospective contractor or grantee certifies in writing to the agency awarding the contract or grant that the contractor or grantee has no seriously delinquent tax debts, and for other purposes.
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S. 2433: Global Poverty Act of 2007. A bill to require the President to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to further the United States foreign policy objective of promoting the reduction of global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of reducing by one-half the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less than $1 per day. (9 Cosponsors)
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S. 2330: Veterans Homelessness Prevention Act. A bill to authorize a pilot program within the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development with the goal of preventing at-risk veterans and veteran families from falling into homelessness, and for other purposes. (1 Cosponsor)

Posted by: rkrider at August 3, 2008 10:06 AM

rkrider:
Why did you leave out the senate banking committee? That's his committee, per his statement.

Posted by: RicardoVerde at August 3, 2008 10:29 AM

Guess what rkrider? We've all seen his puffed up resume before, filled with gems like this:

S.RES.268 : A resolution designating July 12, 2007, as “National Summer Learning Day”.

And, belive it or not, we, unlike you, are not staring at it in slackjawed amazement and awe.

Instead of a cut and paste job, name me one important thing Barky has ever accomplished for anytone else in his life? And, no, his good grades at Harvard don't count.

Community organizer, you say? For almost 3 years, huh? Can you name one permanent, significant improvement in the community Barky was allegedly "organizing" that resulted from said "organizing?" Is that community now crime free? Or gang free? Did unemployment go down?

He was a lawyer, was he? Did he win any famous cases? Did he set any important precedents? Or did he mostly do real estate work, ie getting Federal funding for his boy Rezko's phony "low income" housing schemes?

Legal scholar, huh? What has Barky written? Any scholarly or academic works about the law or any other topic? No? How about any thoughtful books about public policy or history? No? What has he written, then? Oh, I see, 2 amateurish, self-serving, self-valorizing, inaccurate auto-hagiographies before he was 45 years old. Yes, he's quite the professor, our Barky.

State senator? You mean when he got nothing done for 6 years while the GOP was in control (despite his self-proclaimed past-mastery of bipartisanship) and then had the president of the State Senate give him credit for a bunch of laws he had nothing to do with?

And, finally, US Senate, where's he done nothing at all, had no significant bills passed, held no hearing for his subcommittee, and basically spent all of his time campainging for president. That, and getting a day last year designated as "Summer Learning Day."

Perhaps Barky himself should attend summer school so that he can learn how to achieve some real accomplishments. Until then, I guess, the main rationale advanced for his candidacy by him and his acolytes seems to be that he's black (and that's not even true!), so, if you vote against him, you're a racist.

Posted by: ruddyturnstone at August 3, 2008 10:42 AM

Shorter C-C-G: Bush is dumb but the Dems are dumber because they trusted him!

But unlike your Dear Leader, George Dumbya, the Dems are learning from their mistake. slowly, to be sure.


Scrapiron: Needle has a lot of he said, she said, and no facts. I ran into a lot of people like that when I served 6 years with a volunteer rescue squad. We took all of them to the local mental institution.

Wow, Real quality care there. Someone disagrees so you have them locked up. No wonder you're a Republican.

Posted by: The Needle at August 3, 2008 11:13 AM

Riiiiiight, Needle. Suuuuuuuuuure they are.

I see they learned the trick of shutting off the lights and the microphones to keep the eeeeeeeeeeeeevil Wepubwicans from being able to make their point. They must have learned that one from Stalin.

Posted by: C-C-G at August 3, 2008 11:15 AM

Obama is the cypher candidate. Empty suits scare me.

Look, if Bush is/was an unqualified moron, then what does that make Obama? Cause Bush's resume is faaaar more impressive and substantial that the Messiahs.

Posted by: Techie at August 3, 2008 12:23 PM

"Dear Leader", Hah, my good friend. Republicans don't commission portrait after portrait of Bush gazing in the future as he heals the planet. The cult of personality is on your side at the moment.

Posted by: Techie at August 3, 2008 12:26 PM

True, Techie. I also didn't see Dubya re-doing the Presidential Seal of Office while running for the Presidency... or anytime thereafter, either.

Posted by: C-C-G at August 3, 2008 12:53 PM

rkrider, thank you for the list of Obama's meager accomplishments, proving my point of how much of a lightweight Obama is.

According to you list, Obama hasn't passed a single bill while in the Senate, and of those he's proposed, he has no consponsors or just a handful of sponsors on most, meaning they have no chance of passing. He's passed two nearly meaningless resolutions, and slapped amendments on other bills.

Hear is a question for my readers, left or right:

Is there any Democrat currently in the Senate who has accomplished less as a Senator than Obama?

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at August 3, 2008 01:17 PM

Oh, come now, CY, we all know that this nation couldn't continue to exist without an official "National Summer Learning Day." It's a wonder we survived the first 200+ years without one!

/sarc off

Posted by: C-C-G at August 3, 2008 01:33 PM

Any dope can submit amendments. Getting them passed is quite another thing. The vast majority die in committee.

Posted by: Purple Avenger at August 3, 2008 02:09 PM

Agreed, Purple. And it's worth noting that five of the amendments listed as passed are identical:

To provide that none of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5,000,000 or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee makes certain certifications regarding Federal tax liability.

..and a sixth is so close as to be virtually indistinguishable:
To provide that one of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to enter into a contract in an amount greater than $5 million or to award a grant in excess of such amount unless the prospective contractor or grantee certifies in writing to the agency awarding the contract or grant that the contractor or grantee owes no past due Federal tax liability.

Take those out, and rkrider's list suddenly looks a lot shorter.

Posted by: C-C-G at August 3, 2008 04:26 PM

oshdarnit, Aviation Facts is right! It's not like John McCain has taken as much risk in defense of his country as Barack O...
waitaminute.

Okay, it's not like McCain is as paatriotic as Barack....
waitaminute.

Okay, it's not like John McCain has spent as much time in rehab from injuries sustained in his nation's cause as Barack Obama hs spent in Congress...

Wait a minute here...


The American Left, Folks! Because military experience is ultimatrely imprtant... unless a Republican hs it and a Democrat doesn't, in which case it's proof of some deep wrongdoing. BUT DON'T QUESTION THEIR PATROTISM!!!!

Posted by: DaveP. at August 3, 2008 06:43 PM

Don't forget: McCain didn't pay income taxes for 5 years (while he was a POW). He has a bad temper, as shown by the fact he broke his roommate's (Bud Day) arm (after the NVA had broken it, and set it crooked to cripple him). Then he practiced medicine without a license (by resetting Bud Day's arm correctly, and doing it so well that Bud Day was able to return to flight status).

Barry, had his pseudo seal killed when he was embarassed by being caught using it. So now you know, he would kill a poor little seal that was less than two weeks old!

Barry is a post turtle. He didn't get there himself. You see him sitting there, and the first thing you wonder is who put him there. The leading suspect: George Soros, who arranged that a young man of no particular accomplishment would get a literary contract for his memoirs.

Posted by: Don Meaker at August 3, 2008 09:25 PM

The Ford JR thing was most definitely racist and not the first time the GOP has used race (i.e. Willie Horton, GWB - 2000 primary in NC against McCain). Going to a superbowl party hosted by Playboy is not going to be any different than going to a superbowl party hosted by ESPN. Celebrities show up to both. Half-naked girls are going to be present regardless. It is a superbowl party, not a bible study. I'll go out on a limb and say I don't think he went to the party looking to have sex with a white woman as much as to have a good time with famous people. However, having a white woman seductively ask a black man to call her is implying Ford would have sex with white woman. In the south, biracial relationships are still very touchy and obviously the GOP was playing off of that.

Now to Obama/Spears and Hilton. Here its a degree more subtle as neither woman is on the screen seducing the Senator but both Spears and Hilton are celebrities that are just as famous for their lack of morales as much as their accomplishments. Here just implying that Obama is comparable to Spears and Hilton means that at some level they have some commonality and they leave that to everyone's knowledge of what most people know about Spears/Hilton to fill in the gap. If they weren't trying to interject interracial overtones, why didn'couldn't they have made their point with real "global" phenoms, like Elvis, the Beatles, or the Pope even?

The whole thing shows how low the GOP has sunk and how desperate they are not to become obsolete. Basically the GOP ran an ad that uses other Americans (Last time I checked Hilton and Spears were still US citizens) to smear a US senator. How long before the flag drapped coffin ad gets pulled out of moth balls?

Posted by: matt a at August 4, 2008 09:03 AM

S. 2433: Global Poverty Act of 2007. A bill to require the President to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to further the United States foreign policy objective of promoting the reduction of global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of reducing by one-half the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less than $1 per day. (9 Cosponsors)

This bill was designed to send roughly $65 billion a year (based on percentage of GDP) to the UN, most through "carbon taxes", for 12 years.

Given the UN ability to waste money through corruption and fraud, this has all the earmarks necessary to surpass the record levels in the Oil-for-Food Programme.

But why no mention of B.O.'s time working on education reform at the Chicago Annenberg Challenge with his neighbor Willian Ayers ? B.O. managed to waste $50 million of private money on that failed venture .. imagine what he could do with more.

Posted by: Neo at August 4, 2008 09:04 AM

Some how this reminded me of an old one-liner about Muskie ..
Hi .. I'm Muskie ... well, go take a bath

which can now be updated to ...
Hi .. I'm B.O. ... well, go take a bath

Posted by: Neo at August 4, 2008 09:16 AM

matt a manages to go for the gusto of silliness.

First, by claiming that Willie Horton is an example of racism. One wonders whether he is familiar w/ what Horton did to get incarcerated in the first place.

Was it seeking the right to sit at a lunch counter, or use a water fountain, or not sit in the back of a bus? Was it being watercannoned by a Republican sheriff such as Bulldog Connor?

No, it was for stabbing a 17 year old gas station attendant 19 times after said attendant had handed over the till.

But he got furloughed anyway. Apparently, he deserved to be furloughed, b/c he was black, according to matt a?

Oh, and what happened to this outstanding citizen? He was arrested in MD, after skipping MA, raping a woman after cutting and stabbing her boyfriend and making him listen. Apparently, for matt a, the idea of even mentioning such a thing is a racist travesty.


matt a then goes on to suggest that McCain should compare Obama with the Pope, rather than Britney and Paris. This is ludicrous at so many levels that it's gotta be parody.

At its most basic: This is a campaign ad. You show your opponent in a less positive light. I suppose matt could be anti-Catholic (care to enlighten us?).

Second, the Pope, the Beatles, and Elvis all actually achieved something. That was the point of the ad. To suggest that Obama has achieved little.

Third, apparently to matt's mind, Britney and Paris are comparable to Elvis, the Beatles, and the Pope. I think that provides us all with a good perspective on where he's coming from.

Posted by: Lurking Observer at August 4, 2008 11:37 AM

Too Easy:

John McCain
Congress: 26 years
Military: 22 years

Barack Obama
Congress: 143 days
Military: 0

Any Questions as to Experience?

Posted by: Big Country at August 4, 2008 03:54 PM

To the Right, the most important thing about Willie Horton was that he was a violent felon who, while under "work-release" from prison, committed more violent felonies and destroyed lives.
To the Left, the most important thing about Willie Horton was that he was black.


This tells all of us a LOT about the ethical difference between the two sides of the debate.

Posted by: DaveP; at August 4, 2008 09:00 PM

DaveP,

Nail. Head.

Posted by: C-C-G at August 4, 2008 09:35 PM