Blog PoliAnna » 2008

Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) — The lobbying firm of the man Republicans say John McCain has chosen to begin planning a presidential transition earned more than a quarter of a million dollars this year representing Freddie Mac, one of the companies McCain blames for the nation’s financial crisis.

Timmons & Co., whose founder and chairman emeritus is William Timmons Sr., was registered to lobby for Freddie Mac from 2000 through this month, when the federal government took over both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

Newly available congressional records show Timmons’s firm received $260,000 this year before its lobbying activities were barred under terms of the government rescue of the failed mortgage giant. Timmons, 77, is listed as a lobbyist for Freddie Mac on the company’s midyear financial-disclosure form.

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— David V
12:25 am

9/17/2008

A Response to David Brooks from Laura Zam

http://community.nytimes.com/article/comments/2008/09/16/opinion/16brooks.html?s=2

I am a woman and I am vehemently opposed to Sarah Palin. My opposition, however, has nothing to do with feelings that Wal-Mart shoppers are below me. Most everyone in the US, I would imagine, has shopped at Wal-Mart; it is part of the fabric of our culture. As for Tuscany, isn’t the American dream that everyone can go as far as they’d like? It seems hypocritical then to fault people because they have achieved. Can we please stop this faux cultural divide?

My objection to Palin then has nothing to do with condescension. It is for the reasons Mr. Brooks sites: Palin does not have a world view that would make her an effective leader of the most powerful country in the world. Look what is happening to world markets as U.S. companies collapse? What happens in the U.S. does not stay in the U.S.

I appreciate Mr. Brooks’ courage in speaking truth in the face of pressure on the right to just go along with this V.P. choice. I would appreciate, however, if conservatives would give liberals the same benefit of the doubt regarding our judgement: When we express concern — and terror, frankly — regarding this woman as our president, it’s not because we are snobs. It’s because we understand that this is a critical time in history and we crave an intelligent, wise, experienced, compassionate, forward-thinking, brave, encouraging, skilled, and knowledgeable visionary.

Let’s bag the elitist myth, OK? The country is in crisis and we need people who know how to fix it. Unfortunately, that’s probably not just your average American citizen. Rather, I would hope, it’s people who have been studying national and international matters for many years.

I ask you: Do you think Sarah Palin has the wisdom and abilities of an F.D.R. or a Churchill? If not, then she should not be anywhere near top leadership at this time in our history.

- Laura Zam, Washington, DC

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— David V
5:11 pm

9/13/2008

September Suprise

While the chattering classes and political junkies are all pre-occupied arguing about the relative importance of Sarah Palin’s grasp of the Bush Doctrine, the good folks in Cheney’s bunker are working their little horns off to produce an October surprise in Pakistan. Several news media outlets are reporting that recent cross border raids are part of a US program to beef up efforts against Al Qaeda.

NPR is reporting that:

the raid by helicopter-borne U.S. Special Operations forces in Pakistan last week was not an isolated incident but part of a three-phase plan, approved by President Bush, to strike at Osama bin Laden and top al-Qaida leadership.

The plan calls for a much more aggressive military campaign, said one source, familiar with the presidential order, which gives the green light for the military to take part in the operations. The plan represents an 11th-hour effort to hammer al-Qaida until the Bush administration leaves office, two government officials told NPR

The timing is rather completely obvious and transparent. Perhaps the press will actually focus on that this time.

It’s also ironic to watch the Bush Administration come around to implement Barack Obama’s foreign policy perscriptions. Remember that Obama called for an Iraq withdrawal timeline well before Maliki, and advocated hunting down Al Qaeda in Pakistan while the Cheney crew were still coddling Musharraf. Now the McCain Rovians will undoubtedly distort and exploit this 9th inning gamble. It’s up to the Obama campaign to ask why this is being done now, and not, as opposed to let’s say March of 2003.

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— David V
5:51 pm

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9/23/2008

Bloomberg reports that -

9/17/2008

A Response to David Brooks from Laura Zam

9/13/2008

September Suprise