political tidbits

Mar
8th

Sat

3am Phone Ad Girl is Obama Supporter (via )

Mar
2nd

Sun

What repeatedly goes unrecognized by all of Mr. Obama’s opponents is that his political Kryptonite is the patriotism he offers in lieu of theirs. His upbeat notion of a yes-we-can national mobilization for the common good, however saccharine, speaks to the pride and idealism of Americans who are bone-weary of a patriotism defined exclusively by flag lapel pins, the fear of terrorism and the prospect of perpetual war.

— McCain Channels His Inner Hillary - New York Times

Hillary keeps trying to dismiss Obama’s appeal as emotional, something that can be overcome with enough mental discipline. But behind that ethereal presence he’s a wonky lawyer, just like Hillary. He reads The Times and Philip Roth and talks about the fine points of Medicare Part B in a way W. never could have when he first ran for president. (Or now.)

— A Wake-Up Call for Hillary - New York Times

Feb
27th

Wed

She has been so discombobulated that she has ignored some truisms of politics that her husband understands well: Sunny beats gloomy. Consistency beats flipping. Bedazzling beats begrudging. Confidence beats whining.

— Begrudging His Bedazzling - New York Times

Feb
23rd

Sat

And when historians trace how her inevitability dissolved, they will surely note this paradox: The first serious female candidate for president was rejected by voters drawn to the more feminine management style of her male rival.

— ¿Quién Es Less Macho? - New York Times

But it’s the Clinton strategists, not the Obama voters, who drank the Kool-Aid. The Obama campaign is not a vaporous cult; it’s a lean and mean political machine that gets the job done. The Clinton camp has been the slacker in this race, more words than action, and its candidate’s message, for all its purported high-mindedness, was and is self-immolating.

— The Audacity of Hopelessness - New York Times

Feb
20th

Wed

With Michelle Obama’s remarks about finally being “really proud” of America having set off a mini-firestorm, a speech she gave at U.C.L.A. in early February is coming under renewed scrutiny. The conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt has audio here, and the passage that has him and others riled up comes at the 8:40 mark: “Barack Obama will require you to work. He is going to demand that you shed your cynicism. That you put down your divisions. That you come out of your isolation, that you move out of your comfort zones. That you push yourselves to be better. And that you engage. Barack will never allow you to go back to your lives as usual, uninvolved, uninformed.

— Maybe They Dont Want to Change - The Opinionator - Opinion - New York Times Blog

Feb
17th

Sun

At the very moment when politicians should be on top of the world, Ma, embraced by the voters, enhanced by the toys and levers of power, their gremlins surface. They inevitably get hit with trouble that they never could have imagined or prepared for, and that can trigger self-doubt and self-destruction and self-pity.

— Captive to History’s Caprice - New York Times

Feb
16th

Sat

Mark Penn: “Winning Democratic primaries is not a qualification or a sign of who can win the general election. If it were, every nominee would win because every nominee wins Democratic primaries.

— Talking Points Memo

Welcome to Political Tidbits

This is a place for folks to post little oddball things from the world of politics. Let me know if you want to contribute.