What’s On Obama’s iPod?

By Ann Sanner
for the Associated Press
June 25, 2008
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WASHINGTON — Bob Dylan. Yo-Yo Ma. Sheryl Crow. Jay-Z. These aren’t musical acts in a summer concert series: They’re artists featured on Barack Obama’s iPod.

“I have pretty eclectic tastes,” the Democratic presidential contender said in an interview to be published in Friday’s issue of Rolling Stone.

Growing up in the ’70s, Obama said, he listened to the Rolling Stones, Elton John and Earth, Wind & Fire. Stevie Wonder is his musical hero from the era. The Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” tops his favorites from the band.

The Illinois senator’s playlist contains these musicians, along with about 30 songs from Dylan and the singer’s “Blood on the Tracks” album. Jazz legends Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Charlie Parker are also in the mix.

“Actually, one of my favorites during the political season is ‘Maggie’s Farm,'” Obama said of one of Dylan’s tracks. “It speaks to me as I listen to some of the political rhetoric.”

In the song, Dylan sings about trying be himself, “but everybody wants you to be just like them.”…

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More MSM coverage for Senator Jim Webb… could this be a VP nod indication?

Looks like Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) is picking up more coverage lately. Could this be an indication he is being highly considered for Obama’s VP position? I like Jim Webb but he hasn’t been a senator for very long and this form of inexperience could come back in November and bite the democrats in the ass.. no pun intended.

But I guess if you seriously want change, you’ll have to accept that it may very well come in the form of inexperience.

08AMA!

Arming Obama:
Sen. Jim Webb — Vietnam Vet, ‘Redneck’ — Is Emerging As the Democrats’ Military Point Man; The ‘VP!’ Chant

By Monica Langley
Wall Street Journal Online – WSJ.com
June 21, 2008
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — With his two Purple Hearts, three tattoos and spoiling-for-a-fight attitude, Sen. Jim Webb is emerging as the Democrats’ point man on two of the most profound matters facing the electorate this November: national defense and the military.

A highly decorated war veteran who opposes the Iraq war, Sen. Webb is considered by many Democrats to be the best person to go into battle against another war hero, expected Republican nominee Sen. John McCain. The ex-Marine, who hails from the important swing state of Virginia, could also become Sen. Barack Obama’s go-to person on national security, where the Democratic presidential candidate’s résumé is weak compared with rival Sen. McCain’s.

His rising star has been enhanced by the expected passage of a GI bill he championed, which provides money for veterans to go to college, and which President Bush recently accepted despite his earlier veto threat. All that makes Sen. Webb one of the most talked-about possible vice-presidential contenders.

Yet, Sen. Webb, a politician for less than two years, could be a risky combatant for the Democratic party. The 62-year-old lawmaker and novelist has a zeal that sometimes defies political niceties: He didn’t shake President Bush’s hand when the president asked about his son’s deployment to Iraq. Some of his views aren’t politically correct. He contends that “poor whites” are an oppressed class, and defends Confederate soldiers for fighting for state sovereignty.

A spokeswoman says Sen. Webb “speaks artfully about complex issues that many politicians shy away from, and it’s his authenticity that is so compelling.”

The self-described “redneck” occasionally carries a concealed pistol, and is still suspect to some Democrats for having served as Secretary of the Navy in the Reagan administration. He speaks fluent Vietnamese with his third wife, a lawyer who fled Vietnam as a girl and whom he calls his “warrior queen.” He takes long walks in Arlington Cemetery, stopping recently to place a rock on the headstone of Sen. McCain’s father, a tradition that signals respect for the dead…

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Newsweek: Obama leads McCain by 15%

By Michael Hirsh
Newsweek.com
June 20, 2008
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Barack finally has his bounce. For weeks many political experts and pollsters have been wondering why the race between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain had stayed so tight, even after the Illinois senator wrested the nomination from Hillary Clinton. With numbers consistently showing rock-bottom approval ratings for President Bush and a large majority of Americans unhappy with the country’s direction, the opposing-party candidate should, in the normal course, have attracted more disaffected voters. Now it looks as if Obama is doing just that. A new NEWSWEEK Poll shows that he has a substantial double-digit lead, 51 percent to 36 percent, over McCain among registered voters nationwide…

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(Photo by Emmanuel Dunand, AFP-Getty Image)

Obama personally apologizes to two Muslim women discriminated against by Obama campaign volunteers this week

By Sarah Wheaton
NYTimes.com
June 19, 2008
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Shimaa Abdelfadeel and Hebba Aref, the two Muslim women who were asked not to sit where they could be photographed behind Senator Barack Obama because they were wearing traditional religious head coverings, received a call from the candidate himself today to follow up on his campaign’s initial apology. They released a statement about it to The New York Times:

At the rally for Senator Obama in Detroit on Monday, June 16, two volunteers denied us seating behind the stage the Senator would soon take. The volunteers informed us that we were not allowed to sit in that area due to the hijab, the headscarf that each of us was wearing.

This incident was unfortunate and extremely disappointing. Senator Obama has called us each to personally convey his deepest apologies and acknowledge that this was inexcusable. We both immensely appreciate the Senator’s phone call and his commitment to remedy this issue. We commend him for displaying qualities befitting an effective President. We acknowledge that this injustice has been taken seriously and that Senator Obama does not tolerate discrimination against Arabs, Muslims or any community. We are assured that he and his staff are committed to upholding the principles of justice for all peoples and bringing about change we can believe in. The infringement on our rights occurred and has been addressed; now we are ready to move forward. We will continue to support Senator Obama in his campaign and wish him the best as the race continues.

Regards,
Shimaa Abdelfadeel
Hebba Aref

Update: Mr. Obama’s released the following statement:

I reached out to Ms. Aref and Ms. Abdelfadeel this afternoon. I spoke with Ms. Abdelfadeel, and expressed my deepest apologies for the incident that occurred with volunteers at the event in Detroit. The actions of these volunteers were unacceptable and in no way reflect any policy of my campaign. I take deepest offense to and will continue to fight against discrimination against people of any religious group or background. Our campaign is about bringing people together, and I’m grateful that Ms. Abdelfadeel accepted our apology and I hope Ms. Aref and any who were offended accept my apology as well.

Why Barack Obama was right to reject public financing — Huffington Post

By John K. Wilson
HuffingtonPost.com
June 20, 2008
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From the article:

“By rejecting public financing, Obama can campaign nationwide, and he has promised a 50-state strategy. Under public financing, 90% of the country outside the swing states will be ignored. Without public financing, the Obama campaign has realized that setting up a campaign office in Idaho actually pays for itself from the donations of Idahoans who want to see a new kind of president. This is good for democracy, because it means more people across the country will be involved in the presidential process. And it creates the potential for Obama to win a landslide victory and help transform Congress and state offices. The public financing system would kill a 50-state strategy.

Under public funding, instead of campaigns largely controlling the campaign message, outside groups will determine the commercials seen by people (and therefore much of the media coverage about the campaign). Instead of small donors owning the campaigns, it will be the big donors who fund the national parties and “independent” 527 groups who determine the next president. The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) found that $442 million was spent by 527 groups on federal elections in 2004. Compared to that sum, which may easily exceed half a billion dollars this year, the $84.1 million in public financing is a drop in the bucket. Because of this system, public financing is actually more likely to lead to the corruption of our political process. The candidate who wins will owe an obligation to the big 527 and party donors who made victory possible, rather than the millions of Americans who will fund the campaign without public financing…”

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See also: What is a 527 Group?

New Obama TV spot educates voters on his background, values, and faith to combat widespread misinformation

From the Huffington Post
June 19, 2008
Click here for the original article

“The Obama campaign today announced the release of its first television advertisement for the general election,” an Obama camp press release states. “The sixty second ad, entitled “Country I Love,” will begin airing in eighteen states across the country tomorrow to highlight how our shared values have shaped Senator Obama’s life.”

In the spot, Senator Obama speaks to voters about the core values this nation was founded on and how they have guided him to work hard for his education, to bypass jobs on Wall Street to work as a community organizer, and to lead the fight for America’s families and veterans as an Illinois and United States Senator.

The ad presents Senator Obama’s record of passing laws to reform welfare, to cut taxes for working families, and to ensure America’s veterans have the health care they deserve.

The ad will air in Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Virginia.

Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza notes:

“It’s clear from this ad that the Obama campaign recognizes that it must educate voters about his background in order to counter the slew of negative information being moved via whisper campaigns and email chains already in this race.

This ad’s message is simple: Barack Obama is just like you. He knows what it’s like to start with little and work your way up, he loves his country, he loves his family.

It’s a powerful opening salvo — aided by a candidate who looks natural delivering the message. It’s also an important sign of the work still facing the Obama campaign in the coming weeks and months.

Many voters know little of Obama and are hungry for more information. Do they get that information from the candidate or from other sources that are far less favorably inclined to the Illinois senator? It’s a key question heading into the fall.”

McCain Calls for More Offshore Drilling… While Campaigning in Houston….

redgreenandblue.org — Despite the fact that he supported a moratorium on offshore drilling during his previous run for the White House and he has opposed opening up drilling in the past, McCain called for lifting the moratorium on offshore drilling yesterday in Houston. But what would you expect he would say in Houston?

When in Rome…

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If Politicians Used Their Facebook Mini-Feeds

From GiantLists.com…

#01   Barack Obama has invited Hillary Clinton to use the Career Search application.

#02   John McCain just wrote on Cindy McCain’s wall: “Trashy make-up wearing c*nt.”

#03   Hillary Clinton has updated her status: “bored… lol…. just waiting by the phone…”

#04   Want to be the first to write on George W. Bush’s Wall?

#05   John McCain needs help updating his profile picture.

#06   Welcome, Barack! Hillary Clinton has poked you.

#07   John Edwards updated his status: “just back from the stylist and feeling sexxay!!”

#08   Bill Clinton is now single.

#09   Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton are now friends. They found each other in the “VP Hopefuls” group.

#10   John McCain turns 102 today!

#11   Barack Obama terrorist fist-jabbed Michelle Obama.

Tim Russert.. a Journalist’s hero

This video will come to be known as one of the last yet most influential reporting Russert ever did. You know he meant a lot to the journalistic and political worlds when his open declaration that Obama won the nomination actually made news on its own. I don’t think anyone could ever replace him.

Official response from Barack Obama:

“I’ve known Tim Russert since I first spoke at the convention in 2004. He’s somebody who, over time, I came to consider not only a journalist but a friend. There wasn’t a better interviewer in TV, not a more thoughtful analyst of our politics, and he was also one of the finest men I knew. Somebody who cared about America, cared about the issues, cared about family. I am grief-stricken with the loss and my thoughts and prayers go out to his family. And I hope that, even though Tim is irreplaceable, that the standard that he set in his professional life and his family life are standards that we all carry with us in our own lives.”

The World Is Awaiting President Obama

By Alan Fram
for the Associated Press
June 12, 2008
Click here for the original article

WASHINGTON — People around the globe widely expect the next American president to improve the country’s policies toward the rest of the world, especially if Barack Obama is elected, yet they retain a persistently poor image of the U.S., according to a poll released Thursday.

The survey of two dozen countries, conducted this spring by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center, also found a growing despondency over the international economy, with majorities in 18 nations calling domestic economic conditions poor. In more bad news for the U.S., people shared a widespread sense the American economy was hurting their countries, including large majorities in U.S. allies Britain, Germany, Australia, Turkey, France and Japan.

Even six in 10 Americans agreed the U.S. economy was having a negative impact abroad.

Views of the U.S. improved or stayed the same as last year in 18 nations, the first positive signs the poll has found for the U.S. image worldwide this decade. Even so, many improvements were modest and the U.S. remains less popular in most countries than it was before it invaded Iraq in 2003, with majorities in only eight expressing favorable opinions…

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