So, who did the military support?

Although the military is traditionally thought to vote Republican, there were far more contributions to Obama:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- U.S. soldiers have donated more presidential campaign money to Democrat Barack Obama than to Republican John McCain, a reversal of previous campaigns in which military donations tended to favor GOP White House hopefuls, a nonpartisan group reported.

[Note: this story is from August 14th, 2008.]

Troops serving abroad have given nearly six times as much money to Obama's presidential campaign as they have to McCain's, the Center for Responsive Politics said.

The results also are striking because they favored Obama, who never has served in the military. McCain meanwhile, is a decorated war veteran who spent nearly five years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. The Arizona senator graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and had a 22-year career as a naval aviator.

Not surprising when you think about it. For one thing, there are a lot of African-Americans in the military. For another, the war is going on and on.

McCain endorsements rolling in

It's come to this. Cheney's unsurprising endorsement of McCain is being advertised on TV -- by the Obama campaign.

And McCain's endorsed by Al Qaeda:

It's not a typo, it's a news story.

538.com notes this bit of stupidity in one of the polls they follow. This poll shows John McCain ahead 74% to 22% among 18 to 24 year olds.

One wonders about the general accuracy of any poll reporting this sort of stuff.



Note they show the race tight (1% apart) even though Obama is ahead in 3 of the 4 regions. And in two days McCain has gained 5 points, despite there being no big news this week? This whole poll looks like one big typo.

McCain throws Paulson under a bus

"It has become clear that no consensus has developed to support the administration's proposal," McCain said. "I do not believe that the plan on the table will pass as it currently stands, and we are running out of time."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., pointedly suggested that Democratic lawmakers could not be expected to back it if McCain did not publicly do so.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080924/ap_on_el_pr/mccain

McCain corrupts children

Abby writes:

Can this really be true? Is McCain trying to win parents over by providing their kids with tasty fries?

Wow, politics have really gotten bizarre.

McCain discovers the internets

John McCain might not use the internet, but his campaign is certainly advertising heavily on it. The page below contains THREE ads for McCain.

Cindy McCain's $300,000(?) outfit

From Vanity Fair
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/politics/2008/09/cindy-mccains-300000-outfit.html

we asked our fashion department to price out their outfits.
Laura Bush
Oscar de la Renta suit: $2,500
Stuart Weitzman heels: $325
Pearl stud earrings: $600–$1,500
Total: Between $3,425 and $4,325

Cindy McCain
Oscar de la Renta dress: $3,000
Chanel J12 White Ceramic Watch: $4,500
Three-carat diamond earrings: $280,000
Four-strand pearl necklace: $11,000–$25,000
Shoes, designer unknown: $600
Total: Between $299,100 and $313,100

Wow! No wonder McCain has so many houses: his wife has the price of a Scottsdale split-level hanging from her ears.

(All prices except Laura’s shoes and Cindy’s watch are estimates, and the jewelry prices are based on the assumption that the pieces are real.)

I followed a couple of blog links to get back to this original source. The kicker is, of course, the last parenthetical remark: "jewelry prices are based on the assumption that the pieces are real."

Other than that, you have a $3,000 dress and $600 shoes -- and why the heck not? You're very rich and your husband's being nominated for president. It's not time to buy from J.C. Penney.

Hey, what's the hurry?

A very thorough process, indeed.

By Dan Balz Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 3, 2008; Page A01

ST. PAUL, Minn., Sept. 2 -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was not subjected to a lengthy in-person background interview with the head of Sen. John McCain's vice presidential vetting team until last Wednesday in Arizona, the day before McCain asked her to be his running mate, and she did not disclose the fact that her 17-year-old daughter was pregnant until that meeting, two knowledgeable McCain officials acknowledged Tuesday.

McCain Palin quote of the day

From Palin, in June, comes this quote. (more here)

"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God," she exhorted the congregants. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

Funny how the same Judeo-Christian-Muslim God can be on so many sides. And why blame God for the sorry planning mess of the Iraq war? I'd rather blame Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld, personally. The Iraq war is not an act of God.

Religion, however, was not strictly a thread in Palin's foreign policy. It was part of her energy proposals as well. Just prior to discussing Iraq, Alaska's governor asked the audience to pray for another matter -- a $30 billion national gas pipeline project that she wanted built in the state. "I think God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that," she said.

Palin or Paris?

Did McCain pick Palin for VP only because Paris Hilton isn't 35 yet?

10 Dumbest McCain Quotes

Dan Kurtzman did some work to assemble these, so I'll just highlight some.

9. "We have a lot of work to do. It's a very hard struggle, particularly given the situation on the Iraq-Pakistan border." --referring to a border that does not exist, ABC News interview, July 21, 2008

6. "We should be able to deliver bottled hot water to dehydrated babies." --Kenner, Louisiana, June 3, 2008 (Watch video clip)

4. "You know that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran? Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran." --breaking into song after being asked at a VFW meeting about whether it was time to send a message to Iran, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, April 18, 2007 (Watch video clip)

2. "Make it a hundred...That would be fine with me." --to a questioner who asked if he supported President Bush's vision for keeping U.S. troops in Iraq for 50 years, Derry, New Hampshire, Jan. 3, 2008

McCain now ahead ... or not

The mainstream media is having a field day with the news that a Zogby poll shows McCain now ahead of Obama. Of course, maybe this is just because I've been reading the Wall Street Journal lately.

Polling is interesting, in that polls done for the media really don't need to be very accurate, and in fact it is better for the media purchaser paying for the poll if they aren't very accurate. The "McCain ahead" numbers are getting such interest precisely because they are new information; otherwise they would just be one more poll showing Obama with a slight lead.

Pollster.com shows the Zogby poll of 1089 likely voters conducted August 14-16 with McCain ahead 46-41, but the Zogby poll of 3339 voters conducted August 12-14 with Obama ahead 44 to 42. Did you hear much publicity about THAT poll? No, because it wasn't "news". Other polls done at the same time continue to show Obama with a slight lead.

Andrew Gelman has some interesting charts showing that you can't tell much from polls done a few months before the election (remember president Dukakis?)

By the way, don't get me started on the whole "margin of error" business. What a joke that is!