THE SKY IS FALLING - WASHINGTON MUTUAL'S BOARD KEPT IN THE DARK. WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME - JOHN McCAIN AND SARAH PALIN ARE FRIGHTENING TO ME

WHAT A MESS AS PRESIDENT TO INHERIT

WHAT WOULD SARAH DO?

"...Washington Mutual, the giant lender that came to symbolize the excesses of the mortgage boom, was seized by federal regulators on Thursday night (September 25, 2008) in what is by far the largest bank failure in American history.

Regulators simultaneously brokered an emergency sale of virtually all of Washington Mutual to J.P. Morgan Chase. The remainder of WaMu, the nation's largest savings and loan, will be operated by the government. Shareholders and some bondholders will be wiped out. WaMu depositors are guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. up to the $100,000 per account limit. WaMu customers are unlikely to be affected.

... J.P. Morgan Chase is to take control Friday (September 26, 2008) of all of WaMu's 2,300 branches which stretch from New York to California, and will oversee its big portfolio of mortgage and credit card loans. It will also acquire all of WaMu's deposits with the sale.

For weeks, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department had been nervous about the fate of WaMu, among the worst-hit by the housing crisis, and pressed hard for the bank to sell itself. As panic gripped financial markets last week following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the government stepped up its efforts, working behind the scenes, and at points going behind WaMu's back to work privately with potential bidders on a deal.

The seizure and the deal with J.P. Morgan came as a shock to Washington Mutual's board, which was kept in the dark: the company's newly-minted chief executive, Alan C. Fishman, was in flying from New York to Seattle at the time the deal was finally brokered, according to these people.

The action removes one of America's most troubled banks from the financial landscape, and helps to avoid sticking taxpayers with a huge bill for the rescue of another failing institution... "
Source: http://www.sltrib.com/ci_10561877

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In an exclusive interview with CBS News, Katie Couric speaks with Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin about her various positions on foreign policy and diplomacy.
This is Part One of the interview.

Read Part I here.
Link to Video: Clip One


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This is Part Two of the interview.
Link to Video: Clip Two
Watch CBS Videos Online

I just read some posts on this interview by those who are voting for McCain and Palin. I watch this interview and see the complete opposite from those on the blog Renew America:

"...I expected Couric to be an attack dog for the Democrats as opposed to giving Gov. Palin a fair shake. Unfortunately I was right. You could tell from the very beginning that Couric's mission was to get Gov. Palin to trip up. If Couric had to smile it would have killed her..."

It is scary to realize that what I see is the opposite of many.

Here is a post who sees Sarah Palin like I do: Sarah Palin's Media Training

If John McCain and Sarah Palin win this election, it is my opinion that what George Bush and Dick Cheney started will pale in comparison because we are already in a hole and sinking further. The next President gets an Iraq War, a disastrous economy and low influence globally for starters. Whether the USA citizens want to believe it or not, we have lost credibility internationally.

John McCain and Sarah Palin or Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Seems so apparent to me that we need Barack Obama and Joe Biden. But, that's just me.

I would have liked to see what Tim Russert would have asked Sarah Palin.

John McCain hadn't even read the Paulson plan as of Thursday, September 25, 2008. He has a staff in Washington, D.C. Couldn't he have had it sent to him as an attachment on an email or faxed to him out on the campaign trail if it was important to him to get on board and be helpful?

And you have to be on the committee dealing with this and he isn't, so how is he going to be helpful? By using his staff to get on it?

Bailout plan progress unravels

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I.
David Letterman on his Thursday, September 25, 2008 show continued talking about John McCain because he canceled his guest appearance one hour before the show. You can find it here: lateshow.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/video_player
"What really happened with Senator McCain last night? Dave fills you in."

II.
And here is Dave's Thursday, September 25, 2008 monologue

III.
Here is Dave's top ten tonight which was given by 10 Wasilla, Alaskans (Standing in front of Lake Lucille ~ Wasilla: 7,025 popluation)

Letterman keeps up assault on McCain

By David Bauder

NEW YORK (AP) — "Late Show" host David Letterman kept up a verbal assault on John McCain Thursday, saying he felt like an "ugly date" because the GOP presidential candidate backed out of a scheduled appearance on his talk show.

The night before, Letterman had said McCain's decision to suspend his campaign to deal with the economic crisis "didn't smell right." Letterman substituted MSNBC's "Countdown" host — and critic of the Arizona senator — Keith Olbermann when McCain called him to say he wouldn't appear Wednesday.

The comic was unhappy when McCain sat for an interview with Katie Couric instead of him Wednesday — and even more perturbed to learn that McCain didn't leave New York until Thursday.

He said he felt like a "patriot" to let McCain off his commitment to deal with the economy and "now I'm feeling like an ugly date."

"That's what I feel like, I feel like an ugly date," he said. "I feel used. I feel cheap. I feel sullied."

McCain spokeswoman Nicole Wallace said Thursday that the campaign "felt this wasn't a night for comedy."

"We deeply regret offending Mr. Letterman, but our candidate's priority at this moment is to focus on this crisis," Wallace said on NBC's "Today" show.

The late-night comic banged away at McCain on Thursday from the opening of his monologue.

"You're here on a good night," he told the audience. "So far none of our guests have canceled."

He talked about daredevil David Blaine's feat of hanging upside down in New York's Central Park for 60 hours.

"They just left the guy hanging there," he said. "It's the same thing McCain did to me last night."

He described socialite Paris Hilton — Thursday's guest whose celebrity was once used in a McCain campaign ad to mock Obama — as McCain's first choice for a running mate.

"Here's how it works: you don't come to see me? You don't come to see me? Well, we might not see you on Inauguration Day," Letterman said.

Noting that McCain wanted to postpone Friday's first debate with Barack Obama, Letterman said running mate Sarah Palin wanted to put off her debate with Democrat Joe Biden until after Election Day. Letterman said McCain taking Palin to meet world leaders at the United Nations was like "take-your-daughter-to-work day."

Letterman's Top 10 list was "surprising facts about Sarah Palin," read by citizens of Wasilla, Alaska, where she was once mayor.

No. 10: Palin "sometimes calls John McCain grandpa."

Dave Letterman Show
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Show #2987
By Michael Z. McIntee

ACT 1:
About an hour or so before the taping of the show, we got a phone call . . . . Senator John McCain will not be able to come on the show. According to his 3:00 PM speech, due to the "historic crisis in our financial system," he is suspending his campaign for President and returning immediately to Washington DC to drum up support for the bail-out proposal. McCain believed the plan on the table as it currently stood would not pass and we are desperately running out of time to get this thing back on track. So he felt he was needed in Washington. No Senator John McCain tonight.

GREAT MOMENTS IN PRESIDENTIAL SPEECHES
Our President has a bit of trouble with the English language, sounding as if the roof of his mouth is caked with peanut butter.

ACT 2:
As mentioned above, just before the show Dave received a call from Senator John McCain that he would not be making it to the show because he was needed in Washington to help get this $700 billion bail-out approved. Dave acknowledges the Senator to being a real American hero, but something doesn't smell right. This doesn't pass Dave's "smell" test. Dave believes something's not right in the McCain campaign; someone must have put something in his Metamucil.
Fearing the economy was about to "crater," McCain has decided to suspend his campaign. OK, so McCain thinks he is needed in Washington, but that doesn't mean the campaign should be suspended. Dave says if McCain is needed in D.C., he should go, but then he should send in the backup quarterback to continue with the campaign. That's what she's there for; to fill in. "You don't quit." The Vice President . . . Sarah Palin . . . she should take over the campaign. But where is she?
Paul Shaffer offers, "She is one hot looking babe."
Dave laughs, then continues, "This isn't how a tested hero behaves." Dave suspects someone is putting ideas into his head, then sighs a non-understanding sigh.

And if you and your family have been out of work for the past 4 years and all you have left in your pocket is $20, spend it on the "Late Show Fun Facts" book, in stores now. It retails for $19.99, but I've seen it on the internets for much less. The book is so good, Dave gushes, "Finally, something that makes Guttenberg look like a genius."

And everyone here in New York was excited to have Sarah Palin in town for this United Nations General Assembly. It was sort of like "Meet the Teacher" night for all the world leaders. New Yorkers were happy to have her here, we quickly put this together.
We take a shot of the restructured Statue of Liberty. The face of Miss Liberty is that of Sarah Palin. Ahhhhh.

Dave can't let it go: "You don't suspend your campaign if you believe in your Vice President. You let her take over."

And if you're in New York this week, you should head over to Central Park where they hung David Blaine. He's doing some stunt where he is hanging upside down for 60 hours. We see him being interviewed during his hanging stunt that really interests nobody. And in the middle of the interview, the cable holding the grand magician/illusionist snaps and Blaine falls to the earth.
My favorite part was hearing the fake screams moments after he fell.
Blaine later explained the cable didn't accidentally snap. He decided at that moment that he was needed more in Washington.

ACT 3:
TOP TEN: Questions People Are Asking the John McCain Campaign
7. "This is Clay Aiken. Is McCain single?"
1. "This is President Bush --- what's all this about trouble with the economy?"

KEITH OLBERMANN: From MSNBC's "Countdown with Keith Olbermann."
Of course the conversation is about McCain, his suspending his campaign, dropping out of Friday's debate, and this financial boondoggle that is probably a lot more serious than we want to believe. Olbermann offers this obvious solution to one of the above: Make Friday's debate in Mississippi about the economy rather than the topic of Foreign Policy, but that's too simple.
Dave again shares that just before the show, Senator McCain called to say he was racing back to Washington to fix this thing and couldn't do tonight's show. Certainly we were disappointed and somewhere back in my head I was hoping he was being sincere. But then . . . . . happening right at this moment in the show . . . . maybe around 5:10 PM EST . . . . taking place 4 blocks away from the Ed Sullivan Theater . . . . . precisely the moment John McCain was supposed to be HERE . . . . we show a LIVE shot of Senator McCain being dabbed with makeup preparing for an interview with Katie Couric. It certainly didn't look like the Senator was racing back to Washington. He was getting ready for a little Q&A with Katie Couric four blocks away! When he was supposed to be HERE! Katie asks McCain a question and Dave calls out from his desk, "Hey, John, I got a question . . . do you need a ride to the airport?!"
Dave repeats, "Something smells."
Dave tries to imagine what Barack Obama and Joe Biden must have thought when they heard of McCain's decision. Dave likens it to being a kid when you heard that there was so much snow that there was no school.
Olbermann's puts it simply to Dave: "He ditched you."

ACT 5:
Announce: "Tomorrow on the Late Show, Dave welcomes Paris Hilton, the world's fastest man, Usain Bolt, and musical guest Morningwood.
The Late Show! If you have a muffler problem, we have the solution.
We'll be right back."

ACT 6:
During the break, Dave received this note: "McCain has concluded his interview with Katie Couric. He is now on the ‘Rachael Ray Show' making veal picatta."

Source: lateshow.cbs.com

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OBAMA - BIDEN

WILL GET MY VOTE
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IF BETTING - MY BETS ON McCAIN BEING IN OXFORD MISSISSIPPI FOR THE DEBATE

John McCain said he wouldn't participate in the first Presidential debate Friday, September 26, 2008 if the bailout isn't settled. I think he will be there. Picture Barack Obama standing there, the moderator Jim Lehrer and the audience sitting at the University of Mississippi with the television commentators ready to go and no John McCain.

I always want to be in a room where I can be talked about. If John isn't there, Barack can talk and then some.


Mississippi still planning on debate

Source: cnn.com

(CNN) -- Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said he expects both presidential candidates to be at Friday night's debate, even though Sen. John McCain has said he'll only go if Congress reaches a deal on the bailout.

Gov. Haley Barbour says he's still planning on having a debate Friday night.

"I expect there to be a debate tomorrow night, and I look forward to it," Barbour told reporters at the debate site on the University of Mississippi campus in Oxford.

Barbour said he had not been in direct contact with either of the candidates and he did not have any "inside information."

Debate planners got a big surprise Wednesday when McCain called for postponing the first presidential debate. The University of Mississippi has invested millions in preparing for it.

The Republican presidential candidate said he was suspending his campaign to focus on the $700 billion bailout proposal. His campaign said he would attend the debate if Congress passes legislation by Friday morning.

McCain said Thursday that Washington needs "all hands on deck" to work on the government's proposed bailout plan. Watch more on the fate of the debate »

"I cannot carry on a campaign as though this dangerous situation had not occurred, or as though a solution were at hand, which it clearly is not," McCain said in New York. "With so much on the line, for America and the world, the debate that matters most right now is taking place in the United States Capitol. I intend to join it."

Sen. Barack Obama's campaign has said the debate should go on.

Don't Miss

• McCain's move: Putting priorities or politics first?
• Did McCain blindside Obama?
• Begala: We need a debate now

"I think we can do both of these things at the same time. The next president is going to face multiple crises on the same day," Robert Gibbs, Obama's top adviser, said on CNN's "American Morning."

"We've got a presidential debate scheduled. We've got a stage. We'll have an audience. My guess is we'll have a moderator and at least one of the presidential candidates," Gibbs said. Watch what Gibbs says about the debate »

University Chancellor Robert Khayat, appearing with Barbour on Thursday, said university officials have been in contact with both campaigns but only in regard to "what we have to do to be prepared for tomorrow night."

Richard Howorth, the mayor of Oxford, said debate preparations are under way and organizers are staying positive.

"We think it's going to happen. We're not thinking about the alternative right now, so we're still excited about it and have a really positive attitude," said Howorth, who is a supporter of Obama.

Howorth said while they think the debate will go on, he acknowledged that they are in a "wait-and-see mode."

Hours after McCain called for rescheduling the debate, the Commission on Presidential Debates said it was moving forward with its original plan:

"The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) is moving forward with its plan for the first presidential debate at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., this Friday, Sept. 26," the group said in a statement.

"The plans for this forum have been under way for more than a year and a half. The CPD's mission is to provide a forum in which the American public has an opportunity to hear the leading candidates for the president of the United States debate the critical issues facing the nation. We believe the public will be well served by having all of the debates go forward as scheduled."

JOHN McCAIN HAS EXPERIENCE WITH MONEY SCANDALS - DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE KEATING FIVE?

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John McCain was one of the Keating 5. George Herbert Walker Bush signed the Savings & Loan crisis that cost the taxpayers billions of dollars, and billions more in interest.
Uploaded by stevejust
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Check out this clip from the new movie called "Third Term" of Progressive Accountability.org. It will be available 09/25/08
The new collapse on Wall Street which has featured huge bailouts of Fannie/Freddie and AIG by the American people directly relate to the 1980's S&L banking scandal that John McCain was deeply involved in called The Keating 5.
Uploaded by crooksandliars

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Reporting of John McCain's Keating Five Scandal.
Uploaded by HuffPolitics

The Keating Five

Dan Nowicki, Bill Muller
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 1, 2007

...McCain calls the Keating scandal "my asterisk." Over the years, his opponents have failed to turn it into a period.

It all started in March 1987. Charles H Keating Jr., the flamboyant developer and anti-porn crusader, needed help. The government was poised to seize Lincoln Savings and Loan, a freewheeling subsidiary of Keating's American Continental Corp.

As federal auditors examined Lincoln, Keating was not content to wait and hope for the best. He had spread a lot of money around Washington, and it was time to call in his chits.

One of his first stops was Sen. Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz.

The state's senior senator was one of Keating's most loyal friends in Congress, and for good reason. Keating had given thousands of dollars to DeConcini's campaigns. At one point, DeConcini even pushed Keating for ambassador to the Bahamas, where Keating owned a luxurious vacation home.

Now Keating had a job for DeConcini. He wanted him to organize a meeting with regulators to deliver a message: Get off Lincoln's back. Eventually, DeConcini would set up a meeting with five senators and the regulators. One of them was McCain.

McCain already knew Keating well. His ties to the home builder dated to 1981, when the two men met at a Navy League dinner where McCain spoke.

After the speech, Keating walked up to McCain and told him that he, too, was a Navy flier and that he greatly respected McCain's war record. He met McCain's wife and family. The two men became friends.

Charlie Keating always took care of his friends, especially those in politics. McCain was no exception.

In 1982, during McCain's first run for the House, Keating held a fund-raiser for him, collecting more than $11,000 from 40 employees of American Continental Corp. McCain would spend more than $550,000 to win the primary and the general election.

In 1983, as McCain contemplated his House re-election, Keating hosted a $1,000-a-plate dinner for him, even though McCain had no serious competition. When McCain pushed for the Senate in 1986, Keating was there with more than $50,000.

By 1987, McCain had received about $112,000 in political contributions from Keating and his associates.

McCain also had carried a little water for Keating in Washington. While in the House, McCain, along with a majority of representatives, co-sponsored a resolution to delay new regulations designed to curb risky investments by thrifts such as Lincoln......

Read the full article: http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter7.

HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW john mccain?

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Uploaded by VOTERSTHINKdotORG
How John McCain Voted in the Past
that is when he votes

Missed Votes By John McCain - He leads the list with 64.1 % of the votes

• 64.1%
• Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)
• Representing: Arizona
• Votes: 412 votes missed (64.1%), 231 votes cast

Source: http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/senate/vote-missers/

john mccain cancels DAVID LETTERMAN SHOW TO DO SOMETHING ELSE

David Letterman not too happy with John McCain lying to him today.

Dave Letterman to John McCain:
"Hey, John, I got a question, 'Do you need a ride to the airport?'"

Keith Olbermann fills in - last minute on the Dave Letterman show for John McCain.
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Uploaded by 1970oaktree

John McCain bails on David Letterman and the host is not happy

Source:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/09/mccain-letterma.html

Hours after John McCain announced he was suspending his campaign to focus on fixing the nation's ailing economy, he pulled out of his scheduled appearance on the "The Late Show with David Letterman."

As our colleague Matea Gold reports on the Show Tracker blog, Letterman told the audience during the taping of Wednesday's show that McCain had called him personally to apologize for bailing. According to Letterman, McCain said he couldn't appear because he was rushing to the airport to get back to Washington.

But midway through the broadcast, Letterman appeared to learn that the Arizona senator was actually still in New York. In fact, McCain was just a few blocks away, at the CBS News headquarters. He was preparing for a last-minute exclusive interview with Katie Couric.

Incredulous, Letterman interrupted his interview with Keith Olbermann (who had filled in as a substitute for McCain) to show the audience a live shot on the internal CBS news feed of a makeup artist putting the finishing touches on McCain while he waited to talk to Couric.

“He doesn’t seem to be racing to the airport, does he?” Letterman said, shouting at the television monitor: “Hey John, I got a question! You need a ride to the airport?”

The senator and the comedian have always had a friendly repertoire. If McCain had appeared as planned on Wednesday, it would have been his 13th appearance on Letterman’s show. It was the venue where he originally announced his White House bid in 2007.

Letterman began his broadcast praising McCain, calling him “an honest-to-God hero." But then he turned critical, questioning McCain's decision to halt his campaign.

“I’m more than a little disappointed by this behavior,” he said. “We’re suspending the campaign. Suspending it because there’s an economic crisis, or because the poll numbers are sliding?”

“You don’t suspend your campaign,” Letterman went on. “Do you suspend your campaign? No, because that makes me think, well, you know, maybe there will be other things down the road –- if he’s in the White House, he might just suspend being president. I mean, we've got a guy like that now!”

Letterman later said today's events were an indication "that something is going haywire with the campaign."

We have a video excerpt on the jump; just click the Read more line.

--Kate Linthicum

The Top Ten Questions People are Asking The John McCain Campaign

#10 “I just contributed to your campaign – how do I get a refund?

#9 “It’s Sarah Palin – does this mean I’m pars’dent?”

#8 “Can’t you solve this by selling some of your houses?”

#7 “This is Clay Aiken. Is McCain single?”

#6 “Do you still think the fundamentals of our economy are strong, Genius?”

#5 “Are you doing all of this just to get out of going on Letterman?”

#4 “What would Matlock do?”

#3 “Hillary here – my schedule is free Friday night.”

It’ll be interesting here to see if Barack Obama feels the need to suspend his campaign to go down there and work on the economy. He’s also a senator. And his running mate, Joe Biden, he’s also a senator. So there, those two guys have to get back to work. So of course, they’ll suspend their campaign. Don’t you think?

The Democrats are now at a real disadvantage because Barack Obama has got to race back and fix the economy. So does Joe Biden. He has to race back and fix the economy. But the Republicans have Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska. The Alaska economy is fine. It don’t need fixing. It’s fine. So she’ll continue the campaign. So the democrats are really in a hole now.

#2 “Is this just an excuse to catch up on napping?”

#1 “This is President Bush – what’s all this trouble with the economy?”

john mccain cancels DAVID LETTERMAN SHOW TO DO SOMETHING ELSE

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Uploaded by whudat1
John McCain

BARACK OBAMA HAS A PRESS CONFERENCE AND ANSWERS QUESTIONS

Did John McCain take questions? Barack Obama did. McCain claims he works "across the aisle" and yet it was Barack Obama who called McCain in the spirit of working together at 8:30 a.m. today. Then, Barack and John talked again at 2:30 p.m. followed by John going public with this PUBLIC SHOW for an image to show his leadership ability. It would have been more in the spirit to work together and reach out to Barack in private to build a bridge. Going on public television to make this move was for John's sake, not the country's sake. Putting country first? Or gaming? John McCain made an attempt to make Barack look like he didn't care about the country if Barack didn't take his pressure to postpone the debate for Friday. This was a candidate being underhanded. A simple call to Barack Obama would have been what a true leader would have done - not make such an announcement publicly. It's either underhanded or poor judgment.

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Uploaded by Ishoozedotcom
Joe Biden spoke on Foreign Relations September 24, 2008

JOHN MCCAIN~ FREE SARAH PALIN!

Sarah's John ~

Give Sarah Palin her Freedom of Speech
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Uploaded by 1stAmendmentVoter

JOHN McCAIN'S GAME OF POLITICS - LET'S SUSPEND JOHN McCAIN'S CHARADE OF PUTTING COUNTRY FIRST

Let's postpone the debates until the Iraq war is over, the Darfur genocide is stopped, all homeless children have a home, education is a priority for ALL of USA children AND the decision how to spend $700 Billion to $1 Trillion of money we don't have is responsibly spent.

My first paragraph is written tongue-in-cheek.

There is no way the decision by John McCain to say he wants Senator Obama to join him and cancel the debate for Friday, September 26, 2008 isn't political. Barack Obama after all called John McCain this morning at 8:30 a.m. to suggest the two of them come out jointly on the bailout proposal with a statement.

And yet this afternoon, John McCain's spokespeople said that Barack needs to respond to John McCain reaching out to Barack. John has it backwards again. He is just hoping that enough people don't catch him in his distortion. Deceptive politic gaming.

Barack Obama said that he and John talked this afternoon at 2:30 p.m. and said that John mentioned postponing the debate. Barack said it came across like John was mulling the idea over. Then following that, John McCain goes on television and says that he is asking Barack Obama to join him in the ecomony debate in Washington and that he wants to postpone the debate. To show that John McCain was working across the aisle as he likes to claim, John McCain wouldn't have talked to Barack via public televsion and requested publicly to call off the debate. He would have called Barack and done it in an appropriate manner. Not a way to build bridges. But definitely a way to play politics. Let's see if USA voters choose to see through this charade.

CHECK OUT SENATORS McCAIN AND OBAMA'S SENATE HOME PAGE AND COMPARE OPENNESS AND ACCESSIBILITY

As someone who has met with my two United States Senators and my one United States Representative more than once, I know their home pages. And ease of access and finding contact information has shown wide differences, although I did point out to one who was nearly impossible to find contact information. And that now I just checked has now improved on this.

But only U.S. RI Senator Jack Reed has a home page voting record link at this time. And that too is an improvement from the past.

One thing I noticed when I visited Barack Obama's Senate homepage over a year ago was how user-friendly it is....easy to find the information anyone would want from someone who was being open and transparent. The contact information is immediately visible and Senator Obama's voting record has always been easily found with the links at the top on the left of his very own home page. Check it out:

http://obama.senate.gov/

And then check out John McCain's

http://mccain.senate.gov/public/

Here are my State's politicians' website homepage links:
http://whitehouse.senate.gov/
http://reed.senate.gov/
http://www.patrickkennedy.house.gov/

HOW MANY VOTES HAVE THE CANDIDATES MISSED WHILE CAMPAIGNING FOR PRESIDENT?

A LOT. Here is a website to tell you about missed votes:
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/senate/vote-missers/

Here is the beginning of the list

Missed Votes By Member in the order of most missed votes:

• 64.1%
• Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)
• Representing: Arizona
• Votes: 412 votes missed (64.1%), 231 votes cast
• 48.4%
• Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD)
• Representing: South Dakota
• Votes: 311 votes missed (48.4%), 332 votes cast
• Note: Sen. Johnson suffered a brain hemorrhage on Dec. 13, 2006, and spent several months recovering. He has since returned to the Senate.
• 45.9%
• Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL)
• Representing: Illinois
• Votes: 295 votes missed (45.9%), 348 votes cast
• 32.2%
• Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
• Representing: New York
• Votes: 207 votes missed (32.2%), 436 votes cast
• 30.8%
• Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE)
• Representing: Delaware
• Votes: 198 votes missed (30.8%), 445 votes cast
• 26.6%
• Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT)
• Representing: Connecticut
• Votes: 171 votes missed (26.6%), 472 votes cast
• 22.1%
• Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS)
• Representing: Kansas
• Votes: 142 votes missed (22.1%), 501 votes cast

John McCain's voting record can be found at the website below.
NV means he didn't vote.
http://www.votesmart.org/voting_category.php?can_id=53270

The voting record is listed in categories. Here is the category of

Budget, Spending and Taxes for John McCain:

Date	Bill Title	Vote	Outcome
09/17/2008	Defense Authorizations Bill S 3001	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (88 - 8)
07/31/2008	Higher Education Act Amendments and Extensions HR 4137	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (83 - 8)
07/31/2008	Consumer Product Safety Commission Bill HR 4040	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (89 - 3)
07/26/2008	Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Funding S 3186	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (50 - 35)
07/26/2008	Housing Bill with Energy Tax Credit Extensions HR 3221	NV	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (72 - 13)
07/16/2008	Funding Amendment to AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Bill S Amdt 5077	NV	Amendment Rejected - Senate (31 - 64)
07/16/2008	Funding to Combat AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis HR 5501	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (80 - 16)
07/15/2008	Medicare Bill HR 6331	NV	Veto Override Passed - Senate (70 - 26)
07/09/2008	Medicare Bill HR 6331	NV	Cloture Invoked - Senate (69 - 30)
06/26/2008	Iraq and Afghanistan War Funding, Unemployment Benefits Extension, and GI Bill HR 2642	NV	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (92 - 6)
06/25/2008	Housing Foreclosure Assistance Programs S Amdt 4983	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (79 - 16)
06/18/2008	Second Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (Farm Bill) HR 6124	NV	Veto Override Passed - Senate (80 - 14)
06/17/2008	Alternative Energy Tax Incentives HR 6049	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (52 - 44)
06/10/2008	Increasing Taxes on Profits, Rescinding Certain Tax Deductions, and Increasing Tax Incentives for Alternative Energy Programs for Oil Companies S 3044	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (51 - 43)
05/22/2008	Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (Farm Bill) HR 2419	NV	Veto Override Passed - Senate (82 - 13)
05/22/2008	Funding for Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan S Amdt 4818	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (70 - 26)
05/22/2008	GI Bill and Other Domestic Provisions S Amdt 4803	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (75 - 22)
05/15/2008	Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (Farm Bill) HR 2419	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (81 - 15)
04/10/2008	Housing Bill with Energy Tax Credit Extensions HR 3221	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (84 - 12)
04/10/2008	Energy Tax Credits Amendment S Amdt 4419 to S Amdt 4387 to HR 3221	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (88 - 8)
03/14/2008	Concurrent Budget Resolution S Con Res 70	NV	Resolution Passed - Senate (51 - 44)
03/13/2008	Earmark Moratorium S Amdt 4347	Y	Motion Rejected - Senate (29 - 71)
03/13/2008	Restriction of Federal Assistance Based on Compliance with Federal Immigration Laws S Amdt 4309 to S Con Res 70	NV	Amendment Tabled - Senate (58 - 40)
03/06/2008	Consumer Product Safety Commission Bill HR 4040	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (79 - 13)
02/26/2008	Health Care for Indigenous Peoples S 1200	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (83 - 10)
02/26/2008	Prohibiting the Funds in S 1200 from Being Used for Abortions S Amdt 3896	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (52 - 42)
02/13/2008	Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 HR 2082	N	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (51 - 45)
02/07/2008	Economic Stimulus Plan HR 5140	Y	Bill Passed - Senate (81 - 16)
01/22/2008	Defense Authorizations Bill HR 4986	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (91 - 3)
12/18/2007	Inclusion of Consolidated Appropriations HR 2764	NV	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (76 - 17)
12/18/2007	Inclusion of Iraq and Afghanistan Military Operations Funding with the Consolidated Appropriations HR 2764	Y	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (70 - 25)
12/14/2007	Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 (Farm Bill) HR 2419	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (79 - 14)
12/13/2007	Energy Act of 2007 HR 6	NV	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (86 - 8)
12/13/2007	Limit on Farm Subsidies S Amdt 3695	NV	Amendment Rejected - Senate (56 - 43)
12/13/2007	Income Limit for Subsidies to Farmers S Amdt 3810	NV	Amendment Rejected - Senate (48 - 47)
12/11/2007	Government Sponsored Farm Insurance Policies S Amdt 3711	NV	Amendment Rejected - Senate (37 - 58)
12/06/2007	Temporary Tax Adjustments Act of 2007 HR 3996	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (46 - 48)
12/06/2007	Temporary Alternative Minimum Tax Adjustment Act of 2007 HR 3996	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (88 - 5)
11/16/2007	Supplemental Appropriations for the Department of Defense and Timeline for Withdrawal from Iraq HR 4156	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (53 - 45)
11/16/2007	Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for the Department of Defense S 2340	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (45 - 53)
11/08/2007	Water Resources Development Act of 2007 HR 1495	NV	Veto Override Passed - Senate (79 - 14)
11/07/2007	Appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies HR 3043	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (56 - 37)
11/01/2007	Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIP) HR 3963	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 30)
10/30/2007	Amtrak Reauthorization S 294	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (70 - 22)
10/25/2007	Amtrak Federal Subsidy Limits S Amdt 3453	NV	Amendment Rejected - Senate (28 - 66)
10/23/2007	Appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies HR 3043	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (75 - 19)
10/18/2007	Prohibiting Funds for Groups that Perform Abortions S Amdt 3330	Y	Amendment Rejected - Senate (41 - 52)
10/16/2007	Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2008 HR 3093	N	Bill Passed - Senate (75 - 19)
10/03/2007	Border Fence and Customs Appropriations S Amdt 3117	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (95 - 1)
10/01/2007	National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 HR 1585	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (92 - 3)
09/27/2007	State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization HR 976	NV	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (67 - 29)
09/10/2007	Bridge Repair Funding S Amdt 2792	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (60 - 33)
09/07/2007	Student Loan Lender Subsidy Cuts and Student Grants HR 2669	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (79 - 12)
08/02/2007	State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization HR 976	N	Bill Passed - Senate (68 - 31)
07/26/2007	Implementing the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act HR 1	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (85 - 8)
07/26/2007	Department of Homeland Security Appropriations HR 2638	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (89 - 4)
07/26/2007	Border Fence and Customs Appropriations S Amdt 2480	NV	Amendment Adopted - Senate (89 - 1)
07/26/2007	REAL ID Funding S Amdt 2405	NV	Amendment Tabled - Senate (50 - 44)
07/20/2007	Student Loan Lender Subsidy Cuts and Student Grants HR 2669	N	Bill Passed - Senate (78 - 18)
06/21/2007	Energy Act of 2007 HR 6	NV	Bill Passed - Senate (65 - 27)
06/21/2007	Alternative Energy Subsidies S Amdt 1704	NV	Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (57 - 36)
05/24/2007	Emergency Departmental Supplemental Appropriations Bill of 2007 HR 2206	Y	Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (80 - 14)
05/17/2007	2008 Budget Resolution S Con Res 21	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (52 - 40)
04/26/2007	Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill of 2007 with Iraq Withdrawal Timeline HR 1591	NV	Conference Report Adopted - Senate (51 - 46)
03/23/2007	Congressional Budget for 2008 S Con Res 21	N	Passed - Senate (52 - 47)

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Here is Barack Obama's website page for his issues for his campaign for President
www.barackobama.com/issues

Here is John McCain's website page for his issues for his campaign for President

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/

Here is Barack Obama's campaign's home page:
http://www.barackobama.com/index.php

McCain's record of postpoing things....the Republican Convention supposedly because of Hurricane Gustav

McCain May Postpone Convention

Will John McCain evenually request to postpone November 4th....

WHY DO WE HAVE ONE WEEK TO DETERMINE APPROPRIATION OF TAXPAYERS' $700 BILLION BAILOUT OF FAT CATS?

Every time we want a program to help our children, provide health care, keep social security, help with education funding, aid energy plans to wean us off oil dependence - we are told we can't afford it. The simple phrase to put down the thoughts is always "Well, who is going to pay for it?" And it is meant as a rhetorical question because we all know the question is meant to put the thought out of our minds. But we can afford the Iraq war to the tune of $3 Trillion and bailout after bailout of big business. Isn't there something wrong, here?

When George Herbert Walker Bush was campaigning to be our President his catch phrase was READ MY LIPS ~ NO NEW TAXES. We won't vote for anyone who says that we are in debt over our eyeballs. But we are. Do you hear any media pundit say anything about our national debt? Do you hear any candidate mention our national debt? Look at my sidebar for the cost of the Iraq war. We are funding the war by borrowing from countries such as China and Japan. Does it make sense to you that we choose to be in debt to China, who is not a democracy, a country who is funding the genocide by Sudanese government on the Darfuris, selling the weapons to Sudan for the genocide and selling us poisonous products, not to mention their products killing their own people.

It doesn't make sense to run from accountability and regulation. But that is what we have allowed our country to do to us.

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US Senator Jon Tester, member of the Banking Committee
speaks on the $700 Billion bailout proposal.

Jon Tester asks a good question

Source: www.salon.com

No wonder grass-roots Democrats like this guy:

Montana Sen. Jon Tester, to Paulson, Bernanke, SEC chairman Christopher Cox, and Federal Housing Finance Agency director James Lockhart:

I'm a dirt farmer. You guys have been in the business -- the former chairman of Goldman Sachs.

Why do we have one week to determine $700 billion that has to be appropriated, or this country's financial systems go down the pipes?

Wasn't there some opportunity sometime down the line where we could have been informed of how serious this crisis was so we could take some preventative steps before this got to this point?

Perhaps back in the spring of 2007, say, when Paulson and Bernanke were telling us that the subprime problem was "contained"?

The following is from Senator Tester's website:

Tester: Government's bailout plan doesn't smell right

Says Congress should stay in session as long as it takes to make right decision

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – After grilling some of nation’s most powerful decisionmakers on Capitol Hill, Senator Jon Tester today said he still is not sold on the government’s proposed $700 billion bailout of the financial industry.

Tester also said the situation is too important and too expensive for an artificial deadline, adding that Congress should stay in session as long as it takes to make the right decision.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox said they support the controversial plan during today’s Senate Banking Committee hearing. The plan would allow the U.S. Treasury to buy up to $700 billion in troubled assets—like bad mortgages—from financial institutions.

“Like most Montanans, I’ve got a heck of a lot of concerns about this,” Tester said after the hearing. “I want to know that this legislation fixes the root problems, so we’re not doing this year after year. I want to know that no CEOs are getting big paychecks for running their companies into the ground. And I want to make sure that Main Street not just Wall Street is helped.”

During today’s hearing, Bernanke said Congress needs to take urgent action to avoid “serious consequences” in the financial industry and the U.S. economy. Tester was disappointed because the Treasury proposed its complex, controversial $700 billion plan just days ago.

“Wasn’t there some opportunity somewhere down the line where we could have been informed of how serious this crisis was so we can take some preventative steps before we got to this point?” Tester asked Bernanke. “I’m not sure we’ve got the whole sentence written much less the i’s dotted and the t’s crossed.”

Earlier this month the Treasury risked $85 billion to bail out insurance giant AIG, and the government took over housing lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The government bailed out investment bank Bear Stearns earlier this year.

Paulson and Bernanke Put Aiding Banks Ahead of Best Taxpayer Deal

Bernanke, Paulson Face Skeptics On the Hill Despite Dire Warnings

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Barack Obama talks to Matt Lauer about the bailout

WILL THE USA VOTERS ONCE AGAIN SAY NO TO ACCOUNTABILITY?

I decided last year that I was voting for Barack Obama. I am upfront about that.

We the People democracy doesn't successfully serve its people when the people are not informed about their elected officials in their representative government.

We went to war in Iraq without asking necessary and accounting questions.

We accepted by complicity the Patriot Act that meant we lost U.S. Constitutional rights all in the service of saving ourselves from terrorists.

We accepted that waterboarding wasn't torture as long as we were the ones subjecting others to it. We accepted our torture of POWs in Iraq without our public outcry.

We now are being asked two more things by our Republican leaders to accept without necessary and accounting questions.
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Sarah and the Press....reported by David Shuster

One) Accept Sarah Palin as Vice President without knowing her. She has been protected from the media asking her questions short of Charlie Gibson and Sean Hannity. She met with foreign leaders today while they were at the United Nations, but Sarah wasn't allowed to speak to us - the USA people or the USA media. What's up with that?

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Two) Accept (beyond the bill of the Iraq war debt) the $700 billion bail-out paid by us the USA taxpayers for Wall Street run amuck because of lack of common sense, self-regulation and lack of governmental regulation.

Government isn't the problem as Ronald Reagan is known for saying, but lack of accountability within our government is the problem, as is our disengagement in our democracy. We gave up ownership of our democracy big time within the time of King George and his Co-King Cheney.

While I was in the doctor's office for a follow-up fun mammogram today, I was reading an old Businessweek magazine article (December 24, 2007) that was in the waiting room. The article, The Fed's Mild Medicine - Its plan may give some relief to banks but won't do much to revive growth started with these words by by Peter Coy:

Give Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke an "A" for creativity. As the credit crunch worsened this fall, Bernanke saw a financial system in shock but an economy that seemed relatively healthy. He wanted to restore confidence in the banks without flooding the system with money, which would risk an outbreak of inflation.

Then there was an article The Fed's Plan: More Talk by Peter Coy
written June 11, 2008, which includes this text:

Cashing In on Credibility

Bernanke's goal, it appears, is to achieve an elusive balance between conflicting objectives, doing just enough on each of his many battlefronts to show he means business but not doing so much that he loses ground on the other fronts.

If Bernanke is lucky, he will be able to get through the next few months by drawing on the credibility that the Fed has achieved and stored up over the years. The beauty of credibility is that if you have enough of it, you can achieve your objective just by jawboning. The danger, of course, is that credibility can be lost in an instant.

Dirty Secret of the Bailout: Thirty-Two Words That None Dare Utter

A critical - and radical - component of the bailout package proposed by the Bush administration has thus far failed to garner the serious attention of anyone in the press. Section 8 (which ironically reminds one of the popular name of the portion of the 1937 Housing Act that paved the way for subsidized affordable housing ) of this legislation is just a single sentence of thirty-two words, but it represents a significant consolidation of power and an abdication of oversight authority that's so flat-out astounding that it ought to set one's hair on fire. It reads, in its entirety:

Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency.

In short, the so-called "mother of all bailouts," which will transfer $700 billion taxpayer dollars to purchase the distressed assets of several failed financial institutions, will be conducted in a manner unchallengeable by courts and ungovernable by the People's duly sworn representatives. All decision-making power will be consolidated into the Executive Branch - who, we remind you, will have the incentive to act upon this privilege as quickly as possible, before they leave office. The measure will run up the budget deficit by a significant amount, with no guarantee of recouping the outlay, and no fundamental means of holding those who fail to do so accountable.

Is this starting to sound familiar? Robert Kuttner cuts through much of the gloss in an article in today's American Prospect:

The deal proposed by Paulson is nothing short of outrageous. It includes no oversight of his own closed-door operations. It merely gives congressional blessing and funding to what he has already been doing, ad hoc. He plans to retain Wall Street firms as advisors to decide just how to cut deals to value and mop up Wall Street's dubious paper. There are to be no limits on executive compensation for the firms that get relief, and no equity share for the government in exchange for this massive infusion of capital. Both Obama and McCain have opposed the provision denying any judicial review of decisions made by Paulson -- a provision that evokes the Bush administration's suspension of normal constitutional safeguards in its conduct of foreign policy and national security. [...]

The differences between this proposed bailout and the three closest historical equivalents are immense. When the Reconstruction Finance Corporation of the 1930s pumped a total of $35 billion into U.S. corporations and financial institutions, there was close government supervision and quid pro quos at every step of the way. Much of the time, the RFC became a preferred shareholder, and often appointed board members. The Home Owners Loan Corporation, which eventually refinanced one in five mortgage loans, did not operate to bail out banks but to save homeowners. And the Resolution Trust Corporation of the 1980s, created to mop up the damage of the first speculative mortgage meltdown, the S&L collapse, did not pump in money to rescue bad investments; it sorted out good assets from bad after the fact, and made sure to purge bad executives as well as bad loans. And all three of these historic cases of public recapitalization were done without suspending judicial review.

Read the entire article at www.huffingtonpost.com

McCain Loses His Head

By George F. Will

Tuesday, September 23, 2008; Page A21

"The queen had only one way of settling all difficulties, great or small. 'Off with his head!' she said without even looking around."

-- "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

Under the pressure of the financial crisis, one presidential candidate is behaving like a flustered rookie playing in a league too high. It is not Barack Obama.

Channeling his inner Queen of Hearts, John McCain furiously, and apparently without even looking around at facts, said Chris Cox, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, should be decapitated. This childish reflex provoked the Wall Street Journal to editorialize that "McCain untethered" -- disconnected from knowledge and principle -- had made a "false and deeply unfair" attack on Cox that was "unpresidential" and demonstrated that McCain "doesn't understand what's happening on Wall Street any better than Barack Obama does."

To read the Journal's details about the depths of McCain's shallowness on the subject of Cox's chairmanship, see "McCain's Scapegoat" (Sept. 19). Then consider McCain's characteristic accusation that Cox "has betrayed the public's trust."

Perhaps an old antagonism is involved in McCain's fact-free slander. His most conspicuous economic adviser is Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who previously headed the Congressional Budget Office. There he was an impediment to conservatives, including then-Rep. Cox, who, as chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, persistently tried and generally failed to enlist CBO support for "dynamic scoring" that would estimate the economic growth effects of proposed tax cuts.

In any case, McCain's smear -- that Cox "betrayed the public's trust" -- is a harbinger of a McCain presidency. For McCain, politics is always operatic, pitting people who agree with him against those who are "corrupt" or "betray the public's trust," two categories that seem to be exhaustive -- there are no other people. McCain's Manichaean worldview drove him to his signature legislative achievement, the McCain-Feingold law's restrictions on campaigning. Today, his campaign is creatively finding interstices in laws intended to restrict campaign giving and spending. (For details, see The Post of Sept. 17; and the New York Times of Sept. 19.)

By a Gresham's Law of political discourse, McCain's Queen of Hearts intervention in the opaque financial crisis overshadowed a solid conservative complaint from the Republican Study Committee, chaired by Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, the RSC decried the improvised torrent of bailouts as a "dangerous and unmistakable precedent for the federal government both to be looked to and indeed relied upon to save private sector companies from the consequences of their poor economic decisions." This letter, listing just $650 billion of the perhaps more than $1 trillion in new federal exposures to risk, was sent while McCain's campaign, characteristically substituting vehemence for coherence, was airing an ad warning that Obama favors "massive government, billions in spending increases."

The political left always aims to expand the permeation of economic life by politics. Today, the efficient means to that end is government control of capital. So, is not McCain's party now conducting the most leftist administration in American history? The New Deal never acted so precipitously on such a scale. Treasury Secretary Paulson, asked about conservative complaints that his rescue program amounts to socialism, said, essentially: This is not socialism, this is necessary. That non sequitur might be politically necessary, but remember that government control of capital is government control of capitalism. Does McCain have qualms about this, or only quarrels?

On "60 Minutes" Sunday evening, McCain, saying "this may sound a little unusual," said that he would like to replace Cox with Andrew Cuomo, the Democratic attorney general of New York who is the son of former governor Mario Cuomo. McCain explained that Cuomo has "respect" and "prestige" and could "lend some bipartisanship." Conservatives have been warned.

Conservatives who insist that electing McCain is crucial usually start, and increasingly end, by saying he would make excellent judicial selections. But the more one sees of his impulsive, intensely personal reactions to people and events, the less confidence one has that he would select judges by calm reflection and clear principles, having neither patience nor aptitude for either.

It is arguable that, because of his inexperience, Obama is not ready for the presidency. It is arguable that McCain, because of his boiling moralism and bottomless reservoir of certitudes, is not suited to the presidency. Unreadiness can be corrected, although perhaps at great cost, by experience. Can a dismaying temperament be fixed?

georgewill@washpost.com

John McCain's Campaign Manager, Rick Davis being paid by Freddie Mac until last month.
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Sept 23, 2008: There are new reports from the New York Times and Newsweek Magazine that a lobbying firm at which Senator John McCain's campaign manager Rick Davis was once a partner was paid $15,000 a month by mortgage giant Freddie Mac until last month. Newsweek’s Michael Isikoff speaks with Rachel Maddow.

Two things I would like to be accounted for and by my government
are Truth and Justice.

Palin on Thin Ice

By Ruth Marcus | September 23, 2008; 5:29 PM ET

Source: voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/2008/09/palin_on_thin_ice

With today’s kerfuffle over the media being kept away from Sarah Palin’s meetings with foreign leaders -- like there was a risk she’d answer their shouted questions? -- I’ve been mulling over Colby’s post about the Hannity-Palin “100 percent pure infomercial” interview. I watched both nights, then read the transcripts, and I think the interview hasn’t gotten nearly the attention it deserved. While I agree with Colby’s assessment that the audience was “treated to a political advertisement aimed at serving the interests of the Republican presidential ticket,” I think the Hannity love-fest offered a valuable look at Palin, perhaps more revealing because she was on such friendly territory. For all the softballs Hannity tossed her way, Palin did not come off very well, in my view. If this was a political commercial, I wasn’t buying the product.

The way she answers questions brings to mind -- I have Alaska on the brain, admittedly -- the image of a polar bear, jumping from rhetorical ice floe to ice floe, drifting some but eventually managing to get safely to dry land. No flubs, but you get the sense that she could plunge into the icy water at any moment. Palin has an odd tendency to use the same word twice in a sentence, as in, “The people of American realize that inherently all political power is inherent in the people,” or, about John McCain, “He can surpass the partisanship that must be surpassed to deal with an issue like this.” Or, combining word repetition with another Palin verbal tic, word dropping, this about the economic meltdown: “Well, you know, first Fannie and Freddie, different because quasi-government agencies there where government had to step in because the adverse impact all across our nation, especially with homeowners, is just too impacting.”

Ok, not everyone is Daniel Webster. Palin isn’t the first politician to dwell in the land of anodyne clichés such as, “We sort of have a do-nothing Senate right now where nobody is really wanting to pick up the ball and run with it.” Yet I always got the sense listening to George W. Bush tying himself up in rhetorical knots that his problem was more in the nature of getting the words to come out of his mouth correctly, not so much that he didn’t know what to say. Palin -- I’m not so sure.

An Alaska friend tells me that Palin has always benefited from being underestimated. Maybe I’m doing that. Maybe I’ve been around polished politicians too long to appreciate the unvarnished authenticity that obviously appeals to many voters. But there’s no Palin interview I’ve listened to, before or after her selection, that gave me the sense that she had anything but a millimeter-thin understanding of the issues facing the country she hopes to help lead.

Consider this exchange.

Hannity: What is our role as a country as it relates to national security?

Palin: Yes. That's a great question, and being an optimist I see our role in the world as one of being a force for good, and one of being the leader of the world when it comes to the values that -- it seems that just human kind embraces the values that -- encompass life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and that's just -- not just in America, that is in our world.

And America is in a position because we care for so many people to be able to lead and to be able to have a strong diplomacy and a strong military also at the same time to defend not only our freedoms, but to help these rising smaller democratic countries that are just -- you know, they're putting themselves on the map right now, and they're going to be looking to America as that leader.

We being used as a force for good is how I see our country.

Whew. Made it to the other side of that one.

Can’t wait for the debate. I bet it will be impacting.

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OBAMA - BIDEN 2008

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Did you see Bill Clinton Part I, Part II,
Part III, last night on David Letterman (September 22, 2008)? He mentioned Hillary's economic plan, but not Barack Obama's
Uploaded by Mango77774

On Jon Stewart tonight, Bill Clinton had to force the name Barack Obama out while being clapped off the first segment. Then Jon called Clinton out on his performance on David Letterman last night regarding Barack Obama.

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OBAMA - BIDEN 2008

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Fact:
700 Billion Euros Better Than 700 Billion Dollars...

The best place to watch the debates will be C-span
Presidential Debate ~ Friday Night ~ September 26, 2008
www.c-span.org/Politics